Juice gets a boost from Earth on its way to Jupiter
The European space probe changed its course and speed through a gravity manoeuvre without using much fuel.
The Juice space probe has successfully carried out a gravity manoeuvre past Earth on its way to Jupiter. The European Space Agency (ESA) reports that the probe thereby gained 3.5 kilometres per second in speed and changed its trajectory by twenty degrees.
Juice passed Earth on 28 September at approximately 8,640 kilometres above the Indian Ocean. The manoeuvre used Earth’s gravity to adjust the probe’s speed and direction. According to ESA, only a small course correction was needed in the four weeks before the passage.
Such a gravity manoeuvre saves fuel. Juice will need that fuel later to slow down at Jupiter, study the planet and fly past its icy moons. ESA says the successful passage preserves additional fuel for observations at Jupiter.
The passage also had a scientific purpose. Juice’s ten instruments could use Earth and the Moon as familiar test objects. Such measurements help scientists calibrate instruments and check how they function in space before the probe arrives at Jupiter.
During the passage, the probe took images of Earth with its monitoring cameras. Juice also spent several days examining Earth’s magnetic tail region, where charged particles and magnetic fields are measured. ESA expects additional images and spectra to be analysed in the coming weeks.
Juice was launched in April 2023 and is travelling to Jupiter via several gravity manoeuvres. The probe is due to arrive at the planet in 2031 and study Ganymede, Callisto and Europa, among others. The route includes one final passage past Earth in January 2029.
The successful passage is not a new discovery about Jupiter or its moons. Its direct result is mainly technical: the probe is on a better course, has saved fuel and has collected valuable calibration data. The most important scientific results will only emerge after the instrument teams have examined the new data.
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The technical manoeuvre and mission planning have been confirmed by ESA and independently described by ScienceDaily as recent news. The article makes no claim of a scientific discovery that has not yet been published.
- confirmed Juice carried out a successful gravity manoeuvre past Earth on 28 September. — Confirmed by ESA. source
- confirmed The probe passed approximately 8,640 kilometres above the Indian Ocean. — ESA gives this distance and location. source
- confirmed The speed increased by 3.5 kilometres per second and the trajectory changed by twenty degrees. — Confirmed by ESA and ScienceDaily. source
- confirmed Juice is scheduled to arrive at Jupiter in 2031. — ESA gives the planned arrival and mission design. source
- confirmed The scientific yield of the new measurements has not yet been established. — ESA reports that additional data are still being analysed. source
Editor's note
The successful passage, change of course, gain in speed and planned mission have been confirmed by ESA. The scientific yield of the instrument measurements is not yet established; the data are still being analysed.Sources
- Juice’s September 2026 Earth flyby: the movie — European Space Agency
- Juice to fly past Earth for third gravity assist — European Space Agency
- ESA’s Juice just used Earth as a slingshot to Jupiter — ScienceDaily
More on this in Dutch media
- AD — „juice esa”
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