Discover
/
Article

NASA’s Juno spacecraft achieves orbit around Jupiter

JUL 05, 2016

DOI: 10.1063/PT.5.029938

Physics Today

Nature : On 4 July NASA’s Juno spacecraft successfully entered Jupiter’s orbit. Launched in August 2011, the craft took almost five years to make the roughly 2.7 billion km trip. Juno is to complete two 53-day orbits of the planet before burning its main engine and settling into a shorter, 14-day orbiting pattern. The first spacecraft in more than two decades to visit Jupiter, Juno will investigate the giant planet’s composition, Great Red Spot, and massive radiation belts. The ultimate goal is to gain insight into how Jupiter, and the entire solar system, evolved.

Related content
/
Article
/
Article
/
Article
/
Article
/
Article
Despite the tumultuous history of the near-Earth object’s parent body, water may have been preserved in the asteroid for about a billion years.

Get PT in your inbox

Physics Today - The Week in Physics

The Week in Physics" is likely a reference to the regular updates or summaries of new physics research, such as those found in publications like Physics Today from AIP Publishing or on news aggregators like Phys.org.

Physics Today - Table of Contents
Physics Today - Whitepapers & Webinars
By signing up you agree to allow AIP to send you email newsletters. You further agree to our privacy policy and terms of service.