he suite of instruments includes cameras, heat mappers, chemical analyzers, surface-penetrating radar and a sample collector that may be able to directly study particles from Europa’s underground ocean that are shot into space in an erupting plume.
“Answering the big question — is there life in the universe — really starts from understanding if there’s life in the solar system. Europa is one of those critical areas where we believe the environment is just perfect for potential development of life. This mission will be that step that helps us understand the environment and hopefully give us an indication how habitable the environment could be,” John Grunsfeld, NASA associate administrator for science, told reporters on a conference call Tuesday.