Exploring Europa with a Surface Lander Powered by a Small Radioisotope Power System (RPS)

This paper describes a conceptual landed mission to the Jovian satellite Europa using a small RPS powered lander that would ride piggyback on the proposed Jupiter Icy Moons Orbiter (JIMO). This mission study was performed to assess the feasibility of landing a realistic science driven payload using a conceptual small radioisotope power system (US) to provide electrical and thermal power during the extended duration cruise phase (up to 13 years) and the nominal 30 day surface science mission. This paper includes individual sections that describe the key science goals, the mission architecture, and the conceptual design of the Europa Lander Mission (ELM) spacecraft.