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“But this scenario is so complex that it is currently impossible to simulate with the Juice software simulator,” says Giulio Pinzan. “We were flying into this test completely blind.”
Yet, despite their expectations, the team succeeded on the very first attempt on day one. Juice’s navigation software locked on to the correct regions of Callisto, kept its instruments pointed directly at them, and safely maintained the correct trajectory as it navigated through the demanding flyby.
“We really have to praise our Flight Dynamics team, in particular,” says Giulio. “Their mathematical calculations were spot on and enabled us to cruise through a clean flyby on the very first attempt despite the lack of experience they would usually gain from experimenting with the software simulator. It was amazing, really. They surprised even us.”
"The Airbus team also did a remarkable job setting up the engineering model in time for the test, while at the same time providing us with all the details that we needed to operate the autonomous navigation system correctly."
What happens next?
The Callisto flyby is one of the most demanding scenarios that Juice will face and is one of the most difficult to set up and carry out with the engineering model.
The model was transported from Airbus in France to ESOC in Germany in February. With the successful completion of this final test, it is now fully set up, the ESA teams are fully trained on how to use it, and it has officially been handed over.
The Juice team now need to confirm that the flight model behaves in exactly the same way as the engineering model by carrying out a similar test in space. However, the only opportunities to track a large object with Juice’s navigation camera will come during its planetary flybys.
The upcoming lunar-Earth gravity assist in August this year is not an option for this test. During this double flyby, Juice will swing past the Moon and then Earth less than 24 hours later in order to steal energy from both bodies in quick succession. It is a very delicate manoeuvre that has never been attempted before and all hands will need to be ready to react to any anomaly at a moment’s notice.
Stay tuned to @esaoperations and @ESA_Juice on X for celebrations of Juice’s launch anniversary around 14 April, and for updates as Europe’s Jupiter mission briefly returns to Earth in August 2024.