2026-09-05 15:31:25 UTC
JD 2461289.15
STATION 03 · ASTROMETRICS DOSSIER ACTIVE SCIENCE

Juno

NASA / JPL Target: Jupiter Polar Orbit & Galilean Moons In flight: 15y 1m (Launched Aug 5, 2011)
REAL-TIME ASTROMETRICS CONSOLE
FRAME: HELIOCENTRIC / J2000
Heliocentric Distance 5.20000 AU 777,908,928 km
Round-Trip Light Time (RTLT) 01h 26m 30s One-Way Delay: 43m 15s
Spacecraft Velocity 21.50 km/s 77,400 km/h heliocentric
Trajectory Profile Highly eccentric polar orbit around Jupiter (~38 days) Phase: Extended Mission Operations

01 Mission Architecture & Scientific Objectives

Juno is a solar-powered spacecraft orbiting Jupiter's poles to map its deep atmospheric dynamics, core gravity field, and massive magnetosphere. Now in its extended mission, Juno is executing close flybys of the Galilean satellites—including high-resolution flybys of volcanic Io and fractured Europa—unveiling tidal volcanism and magnetic induction.

02 Scientific Instrument Payload

Sensor Subsystem Scientific Measurement Function State
JIRAM Jovian Infrared Auroral Mapper
Infrared camera and spectrometer mapping Io lava lakes and polar cyclones.
Active
MWR Microwave Radiometer
Probes deep atmosphere below ammonia clouds down to hundreds of bars.
Active
MAG Fluxgate Magnetometer
Maps the intricate Jovian internal dynamo magnetic field.
Active
JunoCam Visible Light Imager
High-resolution public science camera capturing atmospheric vortices.
Active

03 Historical Astrometric Chronology

2011
Launch on Atlas V from Cape Canaveral.
2016
Jupiter Orbit Insertion with historic braking burn.
2021
Close flyby of Ganymede; extended mission approved.
2022
Close Europa pass detecting crustal oxygen production.
2023-2024
Twin 1,500 km ultra-close flybys of volcanic moon Io.
2026+
Continuing polar ring and atmospheric boundary studies.