The Jupiter probe recently launched Earth’s first double flyby, capturing beautiful views of the Moon and Earth during a quick flyby through the inner solar system.
The European Space Agency (ESA) has released footage from JUICE’s lunar-Earth flyby, which sent the spacecraft towards Venus en route to the Jovian system. The 1.5-minute video shows JUICE approaching the Moon and flying through its cratered area in the dark before the green color of Earth appears in the frame.
The JUpiter ICy moons Explorer (JUICE) makes a dangerous approach on August 19-20, using the gravitational pull of the Moon and Earth to send it on a trajectory towards Venus. “The gravity assist flyby was flawless, everything went off without a hitch, and we were excited to see JUICE coming back so close to Earth,” said Ignacio Tanco, JUICE’s space operations manager, in a statement.
The images were captured by JUICE’s two surveillance cameras, designed to monitor the spacecraft’s flow and antennas. The lunar-Earth flyby also gave ground control an opportunity to test JUICE’s science instruments, with all ten turned on during the lunar flyby and eight turned on during the Earth flyby.
“The timing and location of this double flight allowed us to carefully study the behavior of the JUICE instruments,” said Claire Vallat, a JUICE operations scientist, in a statement. “It happened early in the Juice mission that we were able to use the data to prepare the instruments for the Jupiter landing. And given how well we know the physical properties of the Earth, the Moon, and the space environment, it’s also a good place to understand how instruments respond to real-world guidance.”
The spacecraft is on an eight-year mission to Jupiter to scan its icy moons for signs of habitation. Using the gravitational pull of the Moon and Earth, JUICE changed its speed and direction to change its trajectory. A flyby of the Moon increased the spacecraft’s speed by 0.5 miles per second (0.9 km per second) relative to the Sun, which guided the spacecraft toward Earth. After its close encounter with Earth, JUICE’s speed is reduced by 2.9 miles per second (4.8 kilometers per second) relative to the Sun, directing it on a new course toward Venus.
The spacecraft will orbit Venus in August 2025 before heading back toward Earth. After that, JUICE will make two more flybys around its home planet, one in September 2026 and the other in January 2029. JUICE’s maneuvers through the solar system are designed to put it on the right path and help it reach the right speed to enter orbit. Jupiter. 2031.
JUICE was launched in April 2023 from the European Spaceport in French Guiana. A few hours after liftoff, the spacecraft captured the first moments of its 12-year mission, dedicated to studying Jupiter’s three icy moons: Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto.
More: JUICE Spacecraft Sends Farewell Photos of Earth as It Heads to Jupiter
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