I was on a jury for four weeks in Jan/Feb 2020. One of my fellow jurors worked at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab (JPL) and extended an open invitation to bring the kids for a special tour, not just the regular one that anyone can do. On June 15, 2023 I could finally take him up on the invitation. While we were there, we got to see the Europa Clipper spacecraft being built. I remember getting chills and even getting a little choked up. Today the spacecraft is being launched on a Space X mission to begin its 1.8 billion-mile (2.9 billion-km) journey to reach Jupiter sometime in April 2030. It will orbit Jupiter, and conduct 49 close flybys of Europa.

Brad Barrish @bradbarrish