The lunar surface captured by the JANUS camera system during the JUICE space probe’s flybys on 19 and 20 August 2024.
The lunar surface captured by the JANUS camera system during the JUICE space probe’s flybys on 19 and 20 August 2024.
During its lunar-Earth flyby, the JUICE space probe's scientific experiments were switched on – ten during the flyby of the Moon and eight during the flyby of Earth. The JANUS camera system, which DLR is closely involved in, took several hundred images of the near side of the Moon and later also of Earth’s illuminated side. The DLR Institute of Planetary Research was heavily involved in the planning of the JANUS activities during the Lunar-Earth Gravity Assist (LEGA) flight manoeuvre. Initially, all command sequences were tested on the Ground Reference Model, which is located at and operated by DLR. DLR is also responsible for receiving JANUS’s image data and converting it into raw images. The images shown here have not yet undergone final geometric processing yet; these corrections will take place in the coming weeks.
