Jupiter JUICE: Lots of Vitamin Sea

The Abduction of Ganymede (Le Sueur)

This Jupiter JUICE is not the kind that flows from commercial presses, but it is the kind that scientists are hoping will contain some life-giving waters.

“Gas giant” Jupiter (aka “Father God” from the Latin words Dyeu “God” plus piter “father”) can be seen by the naked eye, and has therefore been observed for millennia.  Wikipedia reports that

Jovian is “the adjectival form of Jupiter,” just as Jove is an alternative nominative form.  The word “jovial,” meaning “happy” or “merry” is derived from the astrological influence that Jupiter is believed to exert upon moods.

The word “JUICE” is a bit more complicated.  It is an acronym which stems from the descriptive phrase “JUpiter ICy moons Explorer.”  This is a brief way of identifying what Universe Today

calls “a solar-powered spacecraft that will spend 3.5 years within the Jovian system, investigating Ganymede [the namesake of which was abducted and “investigated” by Zeus, but that’s a whole other sordid tale], Europa [who was courted by Zeus, the “god-father” who certainly seems to have gotten around] and the upper atmosphere of Jupiter.”

Both Ganymede and Europa are thought to have oceans (uh oh, isn’t that Neptune’s domain?) – Ganymede’s underground, and Europa’s beneath an icy exterior.  A primary goal in exploring these

suspected oceans is to discover whether life can (or perhaps does) exist there.  Along with that exciting mission, JUICE will also “capture images of Jupiter’s moon Callisto, search for auroras in the giant’s upper atmosphere, and measure the planet’s powerful magnetic field.”

Resources

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/47273432

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jupiter

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ganymede_(mythology)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Europa_(moon)

Copyright May 5, 2012 by Linda Van Slyke   All Rights Reserved