Juno. Photo from NASA archive.

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Juno

Juno spacecraft model 1.png

Artist's rendering of the Juno spacecraft

Mission type Jupiter orbiter

Operator NASA / JPL

COSPAR ID 2011-040A

SATCAT no. 37773

Website

nasa.gov/juno (NASA)

missionjuno.swri.edu (SwRI)

Mission duration Planned: 7 years

Elapsed: 8 years, 4 months

Cruise: 4 years, 10 months, 29 days

Science phase: 4 years (extended until July 2021)

Spacecraft properties

Manufacturer Lockheed Martin

Launch mass 3,625 kg (7,992 lb)[1]

Dry mass 1,593 kg (3,512 lb)[2]

Dimensions 20.1 × 4.6 m (66 × 15 ft)[2]

Power 14 kW at Earth,[2] 435 W at Jupiter[1]

2 × 55-ampere-hour lithium-ion batteries[2]

Start of mission

Launch date August 5, 2011, 16:25 UTC

Rocket Atlas V 551 (AV-029)

Launch site Cape Canaveral SLC-41

Contractor United Launch Alliance

Flyby of Earth

Closest approach October 9, 2013

Distance 559 km (347 mi)

Jupiter orbiter

Orbital insertion July 5, 2016, 03:53 UTC[3]

3 years, 5 months, 1 day ago

Orbits 37 (planned)[4][5]

Orbital parameters

Perijove altitude 4,200 km (2,600 mi) altitude

75,600 km (47,000 mi) radius

Apojove altitude 8.1 million km (5.0 million mi)

Inclination 90 degrees (polar orbit)

Instruments

Juno mission insignia.svg

Juno mission insignia

New Frontiers program

← New HorizonsOSIRIS-REx →

Juno is a NASA space probe orbiting the planet Jupiter. It was built by Lockheed Martin and is operated by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. The spacecraft was launched from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on August 5, 2011 (UTC), as part of the New Frontiers program.[6] Juno entered a polar orbit of Jupiter on July 5, 2016 (UTC; July 4 U.S. time),[4][7] to begin a scientific investigation of the planet.[8] After completing its mission, Juno will be intentionally deorbited into Jupiter's atmosphere.[8]

Juno's mission is to measure Jupiter's composition, gravity field, magnetic field, and polar magnetosphere. It will also search for clues about how the planet formed, including whether it has a rocky core, the amount of water present within the deep atmosphere, mass distribution, and its deep winds, which can reach speeds up to 618 kilometers per hour (384 mph).[9]

Juno is the second spacecraft to orbit Jupiter, after the nuclear powered Galileo orbiter, which orbited from 1995 to 2003.[8] Unlike all earlier spacecraft sent to the outer planets,[8] Juno is powered by solar arrays, commonly used by satellites orbiting Earth and working in the inner Solar System, whereas radioisotope thermoelectric generators are commonly used for missions to the outer Solar System and beyond. For Juno, however, the three largest solar array wings ever deployed on a planetary probe play an integral role in stabilizing the spacecraft as well as generating power.[10]