Europa

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[[Image:Europa.jpg|300px|Europa]]
Europa
Category Moon of Jupiter
Size Spherical; r = 1569km
Orbited Body Unknown
Periapsis Not Verified
Apoapsis Not Verified
Time Delay Not Calculated
Type of Visit Main Mission


Europa is a moon of Jupiter. It is hypothesized that there is liquid water under Europa's surface of water ice, making it a prime candidate for extraterrestrial life.

Spacesim Missions

Spacesim has visited Europa twice as a main mission destination:

Spacesim Findings

Radiation Hazard

Due to its location in the centre of a main Jovian [Van Allen belt], the radiation at the surface of Europa is high. During the 2009-10 mission Daedalus, this caused the Hawking III to spend only 12 hours at a time on the surface, in order to retain enough fuel to run the radiation shields at a sufficiently high percentage (near 60% on RAD1). The Habitat was also required to burrow itself into the ice shelf -- that is to say, use its engines to melt a narrow trench, and once sufficiently deep within the trench, use short bursts of RCS thrusters to cave in a layer of ice above the roof of the Habitat. Despite these efforts, the astronauts suffered significantly more radiation than in most missions.

External Links