ARCHIMEDES: A Really Cool High Impact Method for Exploring Down into Europan Subsurface

Tuesday, November 13, 2018 - 12:00 in Astronomy & Space

This blog post originated in the 2017 Science Mission Directorate Technology Highlights Report (33 MB PDF). Technology Development Conceptual design of ARCHIMEDES operating on Europa. Europa is one of 53 confirmed moons orbiting Jupiter. While slightly smaller than Earth’s moon, Europa primarily consists of silicate rock and is intriguing in that its crust consists of frozen water. Future missions under consideration to Europa would be enhanced by the ability to penetrate the multi-kilometer-thick ice crust and access the liquid water resident beneath. To enable exploration of this fascinating celestial body, NASA SMD is funding the development and maturation of several promising ice-penetration technologies. One of these efforts is being executed just outside Austin, Texas by personnel at Stone Aerospace. Stone Aerospace is developing an entirely novel ice-penetrating technology called A Really Cool High Impact Method for Exploring Down into Europan Subsurface (ARCHIMEDES) that uses laser light carried by an optical fiber tether. ARCHIMEDES emits laser light from...

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