A European mission to study the moons of Jupiter is getting some help. Even though it was launched on Europe’s most powerful rocket, it’s so heavy that it needs some extra “kicks” to reach the Jovian system. It’ll get two of those kicks this week – one from the Moon, the other from Earth.

The mission is JUICE – Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer. It’ll study Jupiter’s largest moons – Ganymede, Callisto, and Europa. All three are made of ice and rock, with vast oceans of liquid water below their crusts. Europa’s ocean is closer to the surface than the other two. And it’s considered a possible habitat for microscopic life.

JUICE will make a total of 35 close passes by the three moons. After that, it’ll settle into orbit around the largest moon, Ganymede.

To reach Jupiter and its moons, the craft will make several close passes by other bodies – the Moon, Earth, and Venus. During each encounter, it’ll “steal” a bit of gravitational energy. That acts like a slingshot, accelerating the craft.

This week’s encounters are the first. JUICE will fly past the Moon, then swing by Earth just a day and a half later. Along with three more encounters in the coming years, that will help JUICE reach Jupiter in the summer of 2031 – beginning a long reconnaissance of some icy moons.

We’ll talk about another intriguing icy moon tomorrow.

Script by Damond Benningfield