Satellite

ESA is prime contractor for JUICE. The spacecraft relies on proven capable and robust design strategies.

JUICE will be built to accommodate the radiation environment outside the orbit of Europa. It will consist of a solar-powered orbiter with four instrument packages designed to achieve the science objectives: visible imagery, spectroscopy, in-situ measurements of fields and particles, and geophysical measurements.

JUICE satellite - credits ESA

Mass breakdown:

• Launch mass capacity, 4,362 kg
• Launch vehicle adapter, 190 kg
• Flight system mass, 957 kg
• Propellant (for 3,000 m/s), 2,562 kg
• 653 kg for contingencies and system margin

Sub-systems:

Telecom

• 2.8 m HGA
• X-band (K_a band is for science only)

Attitude control

• 3-axis stabilized with thrusters and reaction wheels

Power

• 51 m² lowintensity low temperature solar arrays
• Lithium ion battery for peak and eclipse power management

Propulsion

• Bi-propellant
• Single main engine

The model payload is composed of 11 instruments, with a total mass of 104 kg

• Narrow Angle Camera
• Wide Angle Camera
• Visible and IR Imaging Spectrometer
• Ultraviolet Imaging Spectrometer
• Submillimetre Wave Instrument
• Laser Altimeter
• Ice-penetrating radar
• Magnetometer
• Particle and Plasma Instrument-Ion - Neutral Mass Spectrometer
• Radio and Plasma Wave instrument
• Radio Science Instrument