When will we send probes to Jupiter's moons?

The mission plan calls for a spacecraft to be launched to Jupiter in the 2020s, arriving in the distant planet's orbit after a journey of several years. The spacecraft would orbit the giant planet about every two weeks, providing many opportunities for close flybys of Europa. read more

There are plans to send a mission to Europa with a tentative 2022 launch date. It will not land but will do close flybys, close enough to sample the atmospheric composition with a mass spectrometer. read more

Jupiter Icy Moon Explorer (2022) ESA's Jupiter Icy Moon Explorer (JUICE) has been selected as part of ESA's Cosmic Vision science program. It is expected to launch in 2022 and, after a series of flybys in the inner Solar System, arrive in 2030. read more