A few more copy/pastes to familiarize everyone with the mission while waiting for orbit, (51 days away). JPL says that at the time of orbit insertion Juno will be the fastest moving object we have in space.
Also if anyone is going to play with the "JunoCam" here is a link to the submissions PDF page-
https://www.missionjuno.swri.edu/pub/e/downloads/JUNOCAM_instructions.pdf
Another link here, an abstract of the magnetic reconnect of Jupiter-
http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2007DPS...39.0408S
Mission Timeline
Launch - August 5, 2011
Deep Space Maneuvers - August/September 2012
Earth flyby gravity assist - October 2013
Jupiter arrival - July 2016
Spacecraft will orbit Jupiter for 20 months (37 orbits)
End of mission (deorbit into Jupiter) - February 2018
The Juno mission is the second spacecraft designed under NASA's New Frontiers
Program. The first is the Pluto New Horizons mission, which flew by the dwarf planet in July
2015 after a nine-and-a-half-year flight. The program provides opportunities to carry out
several medium-class missions identified as top priority objectives in the Decadal Solar
System Exploration Survey, conducted by the Space Studies Board of the National
Research Council in Washington.
JPL manages the Juno mission for the principal investigator, Scott Bolton, of Southwest
Research Institute in San Antonio. The Juno mission is part of the New Frontiers Program
managed at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. Lockheed Martin
Space Systems, Denver, built the spacecraft . Launch management for the mission is the
responsibility of NASA's Launch Services Program at the Kennedy Space Center in
Florida. JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena.
Juno's scientific payload includes:
-A gravity/radio science system (Gravity Science)
-A six-wavelength microwave radiometer for atmospheric sounding and composition
(MWR)
-A vector magnetometer (MAG)
-Plasma and energetic particle detectors (JADE and JEDI)
-A radio/plasma wave experiment (Waves)
-An ultraviolet imager/spectrometer (UVS)
-An infrared imager/spectrometer (JIRAM)
The spacecraft will also carry a color camera, called JunoCam, to provide the public with
the first detailed glimpse of Jupiter's poles.
Specifically, Juno will…
-Determine how much water is in Jupiter's atmosphere, which helps determine which
planet formation theory is correct, (or if new theories are needed).
-Look deep into Jupiter's atmosphere to measure composition, temperature, cloud
motions and other properties.
-Map Jupiter's magnetic and gravity fields, revealing the planet's deep structure.
-Explore and study Jupiter's magnetosphere near the planet's poles, especially the
auroras – Jupiter's northern and southern lights – providing new insights about how
the planet's enormous magnetic force field affects its atmosphere.
Unlike Earth, Jupiter's giant mass allowed it to hold onto its original composition, providing
us with a way of tracing our solar system's history. Juno will measure the amount of water
and ammonia in Jupiter's atmosphere and determine if the planet actually has a solid core,
directly resolving the origin of this giant planet and thereby the solar system. By mapping
Jupiter's gravitational and magnetic fields, Juno will reveal the planet's interior structure
and measure the mass of the core.
Deep in Jupiter's atmosphere, under great pressure, hydrogen gas is squeezed into a fluid known as metallic hydrogen.
At these great depths, the hydrogen acts like an electrically conducting metal which is believed to be the source of
the planet's intense magnetic field.
This powerful magnetic environment creates the brightest auroras in our solar system,
as charged particles precipitate down into the planet's atmosphere.
Juno will directly sample the charged particles and magnetic fields near Jupiter's poles for the first time,
while simultaneously observing the auroras in ultraviolet light produced by the extraordinary amounts of energy crashing into the polar regions.
These investigations will greatly improve our understanding of this remarkable phenomenon,
and also of similar magnetic objects, like young stars with their own planetary systems.
How deep Jupiter's colorful zones, belts, and other features penetrate is one of the most
outstanding fundamental questions about the giant planet. Juno will determine the global
structure and motions of the planet's atmosphere below the cloud tops for the first time,
mapping variations in the atmosphere's composition, temperature, clouds and patterns of
movement down to unprecedented depths.
Electronics Vault
Juno will avoid Jupiter's highest radiation regions by approaching over the north, dropping to an altitude below the
planet's radiation belts – which are analogous to Earth’s Van Allen belts, but far more deadly – and then exiting over
the south. To protect sensitive spacecraft electronics, Juno will carry the first radiation shielded electronics vault, a
critical feature for enabling sustained exploration in such a heavy radiation environment. This feature of the mission is
relevant to NASA's Vision for Space Exploration, which addresses the need for protection against harsh radiation in
space environments beyond the safety of low-Earth orbit.
Solar Power
Jupiter’s orbit is five times farther from the Sun than Earth’s, so the giant planet receives 25 times less sunlight than
Earth. Juno will be the first solar-powered spacecraft designed by NASA to operate at such a great distance from the
sun, thus the surface area of solar panels required to generate adequate power is quite large. Three solar panels
extend outward from Juno’s hexagonal body, giving the overall spacecraft a span of about 66 feet (20 meters). The
solar panels will remain in sunlight continuously from launch through end of mission, except for a few minutes during
the Earth flyby. Before launch, the solar panels will be folded into four-hinged segments so that the spacecraft can fit
into the launch vehicle.
Juno benefits from advances in solar cell design with modern cells that are 50 percent more efficient and radiation
tolerant than silicon cells available for space missions 20 years ago. The mission’s power needs are modest, with
science instruments requiring full power for only about six hours out of each 11-day orbit (during the period near
closest approach to the planet). With a mission design that avoids any eclipses by Jupiter, minimizes damaging
radiation exposure and allows all science measurements to be taken with the solar panels facing the sun, solar power
is a perfect fit for Juno.
Rotating Spacecraft
For Juno, like NASA’s earlier Pioneer spacecraft , spinning makes the spacecraft 's pointing extremely stable and easy
to control. Just after launch, and before its solar arrays are deployed, Juno will be spun-up by rocket motors on its still
attached second-stage rocket booster. While in orbit at Jupiter, the spinning spacecraft sweeps the fields of view of its
instruments through space once for each rotation. At three rotations per minute, the instruments' fields of view sweep
across Jupiter about 400 times in the two hours it takes to fly from pole to pole.
Biology and med has a featured thread that is relevant.
