--- title: "NASA Preparing to Launch Mission to World That “May Be Habitable Today”" description: "  NASA's Europa Clipper spacecraft is nearing its launch date. The small probe is set to explore one of the most promising spots in our search for extraterrestrial life: Jupiter's moon Europa. It's a tantalizing prospect. With ten science instruments on board, the space agency is hoping to have Europa Clipper determine once and for […]" date: "2024-09-13" modified: "2024-09-13" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/nasa-prepares-launch-europa-clipper-habitable" categories: - "NASA" - "Space" tags: - "europa" - "europa clipper" - "extraterrestrial life" - "jupiter" - "NASA" - "the digest" --- # NASA Preparing to Launch Mission to World That “May Be Habitable Today” ![NASA's Europa Clipper mission is set to explore one of the most promising spots to look for life in the solar system: Jupiter's moon Europa.]() *\Image: NASA / Futurism\* ## Alien Hunter NASA's Europa Clipper spacecraft is nearing its launch date. The small probe is [set to explore]() one of the [most promising spots]() to look for extraterrestrial life in the solar system: Jupiter's moon Europa. It's a tantalizing prospect. With ten science instruments on board, the space agency is hoping the spacecraft will determine once and for all if a [suspected subsurface ocean]() hidden beneath an icy shell could be harboring life on the distant moon. Most recently, the mission passed Key Decision Point E, the "last sort of big review before we really get into that launch fever," as associate administrator for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate Nicola Fox [told reporters]() on Monday. The agency is eying a launch window that opens on October 10. But we'll have to be patient until we hear more; its journey to Europa is expected to [take 5.5 years](). ## Radiation Blast The spacecraft will also have to endure massive amounts of space radiation during its journey, forcing engineers to come up with new ways to protect its electronics. Jupiter's magnetic field is a whopping 20,000 times stronger than Earth's, making it a particularly challenging environment for technology. "Jupiter’s engulfed in more radiation than any planet in our solar system, and that’s one of the reasons why exploring the Jupiter system is so challenging," Europa Clipper project manager Jordan Evans [told *CNN*](). "Europa sits near the outer edge of the worst part of that radiation belt," he added. Apart from being a particularly hazardous place, it also happens to be a prime candidate for places to look for signs of life. "It’s a chance for us to explore, not a world that might have been habitable billions of years ago, but a world that might be habitable today," Europa Clipper program scientist Curt Niebur told *CNN*, adding that Europa is an ocean world unlike "anything we’ve seen before." While it won't be carrying any instruments that are capable of directly determining the existence of extraterrestrial life, NASA is hoping to use the spacecraft to spot the necessary ingredients of life as we know it. If the agency does indeed discover these ingredients, it could be a huge deal. "If we get there and we do this investigation, and the good news is it has all the ingredients and it is habitable, what that means is that there are two places in one solar system that have all the ingredients for life that are habitable right now at the same time," Niebur said. "Think of what that means when you extend that result to the billions and billions of other solar systems in this galaxy," he added. **More on Europa:** *[NASA Craft Hunting Alien Life Will Carry a New Message From Humanity]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()