Stone Aerospace and the DEPTHX Mission
Stone Aerospace created the Deep Phreatic Thermal Explorer, an underwater vehicle. The DEPTHX was tasked with exploring and mapping marine cavities in Mexico, as well as collecting water samples. NASA financed the project, which aimed to create equipment capable of exploring the waters beneath Europa's crust. The Europa Clipper Mission was later named after this mission.
Mission Timeline and Postponement
If all went as planned, the DEPTHX would have been launched into space in 2016, arriving in Europe in 2018 and submitting full results by 2019. This target, however, was not met because the mission was postponed until 2020 owing to unforeseen circumstances. NASA announced mission approval in 2015.
Development and Launch of the Europa Clipper
In 2016, the budget was set aside for further developing the concept of the Europa Clipper. The project was scheduled to be launched in 2025 in order to examine the safety of the surface and find scientifically suitable areas for landing.
Advancement to Phase B and Mission Progress
This action accelerated the Europa operation arrangement. After the NASA's major review, the mission was permitted to move forward from phase A to Phase B in February 2017, which included the accommodation of nine instruments to be developed for the Europa mission (Greicius 1). Phase B is aimed at completing the system's preliminary design set by September 2018. During this phase, subsystem vendors and prototype hardware will be defined. The mission success includes several stages ranging from reviews to the terminal design, spacecraft assembly, testing, and fabrication. Thus, NASA needed more time to ensure they conduct a safe and somewhat less costly study of Europa.
Work Cited
Greicius, Tony. “Robotic Tunneler May Explore Icy Moons.” Astrobiology Magazine, June 2015, www.astrobio.net/news-exclusive/robotic-tunneler-may-explore-icy-moons/. Accessed 6 Nov. 2017.
