June 29, 2016 / Modified jun 29, 2016 1:11 p.m.

UA Scientist to Delve into Jupiter's Secrets in Flyby

Juno spacecraft reaches solar system's largest planet July 4 after five-year journey.

Juno Spot 2 NASA's Juno mission to Jupiter will examine the origin and evolution of the solar system's largest planet.
NASA

NASA's Juno spacecraft arrives at the solar system's largest planet Monday to spend 20 months surveying to learn more about its composition and formation.

William Hubbard University of Arizona planetary scientist William Hubbard
University of Arizona

University of Arizona planetary sciences professor William Hubbard is among the scientists who are eager to discover what lies beneath the gaseous giant's cloud layers.

"It's a mission designed to probe the deep interior of Jupiter and also to obtain new data on deeper layers of its atmosphere. So it’s going to get closer to Jupiter and linger closer to Jupiter than any previous spacecraft,” Hubbard said.

Juno has been traveling 165,000 mph on its journey to Jupiter. The spacecraft left Earth in August 2011. Mission controllers will put the brakes on the spacecraft at 8:18 p.m. Monday as Juno passes over Jupiter's north pole.

The mission is named for the Roman goddess who was the wife and sister of the god Jupiter.

The mission's primary 14-day science orbit will begin Aug. 27. In all, Juno will make 32 large elliptical orbits around Jupiter. It will then crash into the planet so it will not interfere with future exploration of Jupiter's moon Europa.

Jupiter is visible with the naked eye in the western sky from dusk until midnight. Four of its 67 moons are easily observed with a telescope or binoculars on a tripod.

By posting comments, you agree to our
AZPM encourages comments, but comments that contain profanity, unrelated information, threats, libel, defamatory statements, obscenities, pornography or that violate the law are not allowed. Comments that promote commercial products or services are not allowed. Comments in violation of this policy will be removed. Continued posting of comments that violate this policy will result in the commenter being banned from the site.

By submitting your comments, you hereby give AZPM the right to post your comments and potentially use them in any other form of media operated by this institution.
AZPM is a service of the University of Arizona and our broadcast stations are licensed to the Arizona Board of Regents who hold the trademarks for Arizona Public Media and AZPM. We respectfully acknowledge the University of Arizona is on the land and territories of Indigenous peoples.
The University of Arizona