CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla.—NASA’s Juno spacecraft has made the closest approach to Jupiter’s tantalizing, icy moon Europa in more than 20 years.
Juno on Thursday zipped within approximately 219 miles (352 kilometers) of Europa, thought to have an ocean flowing beneath its thick frozen crust, raising the possibility of underwater life. Scientists hailed the flyby as a success, with four pictures beamed down and released within several hours.
The complex, ice-covered surface of Jupiter’s moon Europa, captured by NASA’s Juno spacecraft during a flyby on Sept. 29, 2022. (NASA/JPL-Caltech/SWRI/MSSS via AP)
Scientists had hoped to observe possible water plumes shooting from the surface of Europa, close in size to Earth’s moon. But none were immediately visible in the initial look….