Washington (AFP)
NASA announced Friday that it had chosen SpaceX for its planned trip to Europe, the frozen moon of Jupiter, a major victory for the company of billionaire Elon Musk who aims to venture further into the solar system.
The Europa Clipper mission will launch in October 2024 with a Falcon Heavy rocket from Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
The contract amount is $ 178 million.
The mission was previously expected to involve NASA's Space Launch System (SLS) rocket, which experienced delays and cost overruns.
Since SLS is not yet operational, Falcon Heavy has been deployed on trade and government missions since its maiden flight in 2018.
It generates around 2,300 tonnes of thrust (22 million Newtons) on takeoff, the equivalent of around 18 747 aircraft.
The orbiter would have to make 40 to 50 close passes around Europe to determine if this icy moon can harbor suitable conditions for life.
In particular, it will be responsible for cameras and spectrometers to produce high-resolution images and composition maps of the surface and the atmosphere, as well as a radar to penetrate the ice sheet and search for liquid water below. .
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