Galileo Reaches Jupiter: Probe Reveals Ocean Moons
NASA's Galileo spacecraft entered Jupiter's orbit on December 7, 1995, after a six-year journey that included gravity assists from Venus and Earth. Five months earlier, Galileo had released an atmospheric probe that plunged into Jupiter's atmosphere at 106,000 mph, surviving deceleration forces of 228 g before parachuting through the cloud layers and transmitting data for 57 minutes. The probe found less water and lightning than expected. Over its eight-year orbital mission, Galileo made 34 orbits of Jupiter and discovered evidence of liquid water oceans beneath the icy surfaces of Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto. These findings made Europa a prime candidate in the search for extraterrestrial life. Galileo was deliberately crashed into Jupiter's atmosphere in 2003 to prevent it from contaminating Europa with Earth microbes.
December 7, 1995
31 years ago
Key Figures & Places
What Else Happened on December 7
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