KerbalX

Context

The Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (JUICE) is an interplanetary spacecraft in development by the European Space Agency (ESA). The mission will study three of Jupiter’s Galilean moons: Ganymede, Callisto, and Europa all of which are thought to have significant bodies of liquid water beneath their surfaces, making them potentially habitable environments. The spacecraft is set for launch in June 2022 on an Ariane V rocket and will reach Jupiter in October 2029 after five gravity assists and 88 months of travel. By September 2032, the spacecraft will enter orbit around Ganymede for its close up science mission, becoming the first spacecraft to orbit a moon other than the moon of Earth.

Details

• Type: VAB
• Class: probe
• Part Count: 1523
• Pure Stock
• KSP: 1.11.1

Flags required! Download them here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/18dQI0SDsk6Zvk1975rYkMsU1rEGwfQ_w/view?usp=sharing

Flight Profile

1. Enable SAS and select radial out
2. Stage to activate the main engine, throttle up
3. Stage again to ignite the boosters and launch
4. Take a fairly gentle gravity turn, reaching 45 degrees at 15km
5. When the boosters burn out, stage to jettison them.
6. Flatten out and stage the fairings
7. Near to when the core runs dry, switch to standard SAS and hold steady. No sudden movements
8. On core stage burnout, stage to activate the ullage motors and again to activate the upper stage engine
9. Stage to jettison the ullage motors soon after
10. Continue on to orbit and plot for either a resonant orbit with Kerbin or an Eve transfer. Perform this maneuver, separate off the upper stage and press AG1 to deploy the solar panels.
11. Perform the required gravity assists to reach Jool. The spacecraft has 2km/s in ion fuel however this is best to be used for maneuvering at Jool and capturing at Tylo near the end of the mission (see video for JUICE flight plan)
12. Please note that physics warp is not advised during launch up until spacecraft deployment and only then is physics warp tolerable for the craft (max 3x)

Action Groups

1. Deploy solar panels (after upper stage has been discarded)