MUSE (spacecraft)
European proposal for a Uranus orbiter and probe, studied as an Enhanced New Frontiers mission in 2014.
Last updated
The mission's launch is planned for 2026 using an Ariane 6, with a 16.5-year journey to Uranus arriving in 2044, and operations continuing until 2050.[1] Mission monitoring, control, and the generation of raw data sets would be handled by the European Space Operations Centre.[2]
How it changed
The orbiter would use four Advanced Stirling Radioisotope Generators because solar panels cannot work at 20 AU from the Sun.[3] The orbiter science phase would last about 2 years in a highly elliptic polar orbit, performing 36 Uranus orbits.[4] An atmospheric probe would separate twenty days before entry and enter Uranus' atmosphere at 21.8 km/s.[5] Under ESA's Cosmic Vision 2015–2025 themes, MUSE was conceived as an L-Class flagship-level mission.[2]
Following the initial science orbit, the orbiter would proceed to a three-year Moon Tour phase.[5] In 2014, MUSE was evaluated as an Enhanced New Frontiers class mission, with a US$1.5 billion cost cap and an Atlas V 551 launch vehicle.[6]
What the maker and period sources say
The same paper noted the atmosphere must be characterized for composition and thermodynamics, including elemental concentrations, isotopic ratios, and noble gases.[7] A 2015 paper by Bocanegra-Bahamón in Advances in Space Research described the orbiter using a Monomethylhydrazine and Mixed Oxides of Nitrogen propellant combination for Earth-Uranus transfer.[3] That 2015 paper also detailed the orbiter's 2-year Uranus Science Orbit phase with 36 orbits for best gravimetry data.[4]
References
- Wikipedia, "MUSE (spacecraft)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Saikia, "A new frontiers mission concept for the exploration of Uranus", 2014; Costa, "Mission to the Uranus System: MUSE. Unveiling the evolution and formation of icy giants", June 2012; Bocanegra-Bahamón, "MUSE Mission to the Uranian System: Unveiling the evolution and formation of ice giants", Advances in Space Research, 2015, p. 2190–2216; Bocanegra-Bahamón, "MUSE Mission to the Uranian System: Unveiling the evolution and formation of ice giants", Advances in Space Research, 2015, p. 2190–2216 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "MUSE (spacecraft)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Costa, "Mission to the Uranus System: MUSE. Unveiling the evolution and formation of icy giants", June 2012; Costa, "Mission to the Uranus System: MUSE. Unveiling the evolution and formation of icy giants", June 2012; Bocanegra-Bahamón, "MUSE – Mission to the Uranian system: Unveiling the evolution and formation of ice giants", Advances in Space Research, 2015-05-01, p. 2190–2216; Saikia, "A new frontiers mission concept for the exploration of Uranus", 2014 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "MUSE (spacecraft)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Costa, "Mission to the Uranus System: MUSE. Unveiling the evolution and formation of icy giants", June 2012; Bocanegra-Bahamón, "MUSE Mission to the Uranian System: Unveiling the evolution and formation of ice giants", Advances in Space Research, 2015, p. 2190–2216; Bocanegra-Bahamón, "MUSE Mission to the Uranian System: Unveiling the evolution and formation of ice giants", Advances in Space Research, 2015, p. 2190–2216 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "MUSE (spacecraft)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Bocanegra-Bahamón, "MUSE Mission to the Uranian System: Unveiling the evolution and formation of ice giants", Advances in Space Research, 2015, p. 2190–2216 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "MUSE (spacecraft)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Costa, "Mission to the Uranus System: MUSE. Unveiling the evolution and formation of icy giants", June 2012; Bocanegra-Bahamón, "MUSE Mission to the Uranian System: Unveiling the evolution and formation of ice giants", Advances in Space Research, 2015, p. 2190–2216 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "MUSE (spacecraft)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Saikia, "A new frontiers mission concept for the exploration of Uranus", 2014 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "MUSE (spacecraft)" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Costa, "Mission to the Uranus System: MUSE. Unveiling the evolution and formation of icy giants", June 2012 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article MUSE (spacecraft) (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.
More in Extraterrestrial orbiters
Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: MUSE (spacecraft) (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Spotted an error? Know more?
Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced