Pushing the boundaries in space

ESA’s Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (Juice) lifted off from Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana 14 April. “The successful launch marks the beginning of an ambitious voyage to uncover the secrets of the ocean worlds around giant planet Jupiter.” Juice is a planetary science mission. NASA defines this as; “a grand human enterprise that seeks to discover the nature and origin of the celestial bodies among which we live, and to explore whether life exists beyond Earth”.

Each mission brings its own challenges and pushes the boundaries of current technology. In the case of Juice, the requirement to collect and store energy to power the spacecraft, from sunlight that will be 25 times weaker than it is on Earth. The 85 square metres of solar panels feature improved ways to collect sunlight. American companies ESS and Form Energy worked on new storage methods that while not ultimately applicable to space exploration have contributed to the development of cheap, long-lasting iron-based batteries that could help even out renewable energy supplies and expand the use of clean power on Earth.

The challenge of insulating the sensitive electronics against +250 degrees C during a flyby of Venus on route to the Jovian system, as well as coping with -230 C once the mission arrives has led to the creation of novel multi-layer insulation to keep internal temperature stable. The extended communication times between Earth and Jupiter, 45 minutes in each direction, means that computing systems able to solve some problems independently have been placed on board Juice.

Giuseppe Sarri, ESA’ s Juice Project Manager highlighted the cooperative nature of the Juice mission. “It is thanks to the leadership of ESA and the effort and commitment of hundreds of European industries and scientific institutions that the Juice mission has become a reality. Together with our partners NASA, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, and the Israel Space Agency, who have also contributed hardware or scientific instrumentation, we have reached this much-awaited launch milestone.”

The Juice mission will take in surveys of the moons, Ganymede, Callisto, and Europa. With long term goals that include the search for potential life in the oceans thought to be under at least two of the moons, and understanding the magnetic field of Ganymede, this is one of the most exciting missions in decades. Terra Sales Solutions are already looking forward, however. With technological progress increasing in speed, and small companies exploring ever more niche lines of research we are looking forward to contributing to the next stage of space explorations and its spin off benefits.

Our expertise is in helping SME’s build sales and markets for their complex technical products. The engineering background of our team means you are supported by a strategic plan for international sales channel growth. To learn more about Terra Sales Solutions and how we can work with you to achieve your international expansion goals in any part of the planet, book a conversation, and follow us on LinkedIn for the latest news from Terra Sales Solutions.