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Vault Plate

Source: NASA/JPL-Caltech
Published: October 25, 2023

Explore the intricate design of NASA's Europa Clipper vault plate in 3D: Spin the digital model to discover the languages of Earth, celestial equations, and a poem for Europa, all uniting art, science, and humanity in a message of exploration.

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This animation shows a boom expanding from the Europa Clipper spacecraft.
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A collector assembly that will fly aboard Europa Clipper in one the four PIMS Faraday cups, which will help scientists study the charged particle (plasma) environment around Europa.
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A collector assembly that will fly aboard Europa Clipper in one the four PIMS Faraday cups, which will help scientists study the charged particle (plasma) environment around Europa.
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An engineer inspects Europa Clipper's wide-angle camera in a clean room. 
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An engineer in full white coveralls and a mask stands pointing at Europa Clipper's wide-angle camera, while inspecting the instrument in a clean room. The wide-angle camera rests on a silver metallic table in a clean room.
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This animation segment shows deployment of NASA’s Europa Clipper spacecraft after launch.
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An animation showing the Europa Clipper spacecraft deploying from the rocket used to launch it from Earth.
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The prominent "X" near the center of the mosaic is the junction of two "triplebands," parallel sets of ridges.
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Ridges form X on surface of Europa
Prominent "X" on Europa
Europa Clipper’s 28-foot (8.5-meter) magnetometer boom is deployed at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
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Seven workers in white lab coats, cleanroom bouffant caps, and blue face masks stand near Europa Clipper’s magnetometer boom after the boom was unfurled. The boom is covered in protective silver-colored material and is supported by several aluminum-colored stands.
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Europa Clipper’s surface dust analyzer instrument is examined following delivery to JPL in September 2022.
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An engineer in a full body coverall and a fask mask is shown on the left side of the image, holding a small black flashlight the size of a pen and examining Europa Clipper’s surface dust analyzer instrument. The instrument is gold colored and about the size of a drum, resting on its side. The instrument is resting upon a silver workbench in the cleanroom.
Europa Clipper's Dust Analyzer Delivered to JPL
The Europa Clipper spacecraft is about 16 feet (5 meters) in height, and will be the largest spacecraft NASA has ever developed for a planetary mission.
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An illustration shows the scale of the Europa Clipper spacecraft by showing it next to the silhouettes of two people. The two human figures stand to the left of the spacecraft. The spacecraft, with its metallic main body at the center and its two solar array wings stretched out on either side, is about three times as tall as the human figures.
Europa Clipper and People
Europa Clipper’s surface dust analyzer instrument is unboxed following delivery to JPL in September 2022. 
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Two engineers in full white body coveralls and masks are shown in the center of the image lifting a silver box up from a cart, revealing Europa Clipper’s surface dust analyzer instrument underneath. The engineers and the instrument are seen in a cleanroom. The instrument is surrounded by a semi-transparent protective plastic that is in the shape of the box that was covering it. The gold colored instrument is about the size of a drum.
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The animation illustrates the complex nature of the spacecraft’s magnetic field.
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animation of the complex magnetic fields of the Europa Clipper spacecraft
Magnetic Field of the Europa Clipper Spacecraft
This view of the icy surface of Jupiter's moon, Europa, is a mosaic of two pictures taken by the Solid State Imaging system on board the Galileo spacecraft during a close flyby of Europa on Feb. 20...
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Engineers and technicians carefully lower the tall core of NASA’s Europa Clipper spacecraft during a maneuver to position it in the High Bay 1 clean room of the Spacecraft Assembly Facility at the ...
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The base of the main body of the Europa Clipper spacecraft is seen in the middle of the image. The main body is large, silver, and shaped like a cylinder, with wiring and electronics attached. Four people are visible surrounding the main body of the spacecraft, wearing full body coveralls and masks. The people are gently guiding the spacecraft into its stand where it will continue to be worked on in the Spacecraft Assembly Facility.
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Print your own 3D scale model of Europa Clipper!
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Visual showing 3D model available for download.
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The Europa Ultraviolet Spectrograph (Europa-UVS) flight instrument in early fall 2021, in its final configuration.
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The Europa Ultraviolet Spectrograph (Europa-UVS) flight instrument in early fall 2021, in its final configuration.
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A 3D model of the Plasma Instrument for Magnetic Sounding (PIMS), a plasma and magnetic field instrument on Europa Clipper. 
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3d model of PIMS instrument
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The Europa Clipper radio frequency (RF) panel is mechanically installed near the top of the propulsion module cylinders. 
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Image showing the radio frequency module installed on the top of the spacecraft's propulsion module.
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In this movie Europa is seen in a cutaway view through two cycles of its 3.5 day orbit about the giant planet Jupiter. 
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This image, using data from NASA's Galileo mission, shows the first detection of clay-like minerals on the surface of Jupiter's moon Europa.
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Dark, irregular features on Jupiter's moon Europa.
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Chaotic, swirling terrain on Europa.
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This simulation shows possible spectroscopy results of Europa’s water plumes, obtained using the Webb telescope’s NIRSpec instrument.
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Possible spectroscopy results of Europa’s water plumes
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This animation shows NASA’s Europa Clipper during a flyby of Europa. 
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This animation shows NASA’s Europa Clipper during a flyby of Europa.
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Students use the fundamentals of density to propose a model for the interior structure of Europa.
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This animation segment shows the deployment of NASA’s Europa Clipper REASON instrument after launch.
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Animation showing the REASON antennas extending from the front and back of both sides of the spacecraft's solar arrays.
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