JUICE Deploys Radar Antenna Written 16 May 2023
Artist's impression of the JUpiter ICy Moons Explorer (JUICE) mission. | NASA
Space News reports that the European Space Agency said that, “after weeks of effort to loosen a stuck pin,” the JUICE (Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer) successfully deployed its 16-meter-long antenna. Engineers tried to loosen the pin via shaking the craft using thrusters orienting it with sunlight to warm the antenna, but it didn’t deploy “until controllers fired a non-explosive actuator in the jammed bracket.” The antenna is part of the Radar for Icy Moons Exploration sensor, which is designed to probe up to nine kilometers beneath Europa’s, Ganymede’s, and Callisto’s surfaces.
Full Story (Space News)