When NASA’s flagship Europa Clipper mission launches in October, a noteworthy piece of technology built at the University of Colorado Boulder will be on board: the Europa SUrface Dust Analyzer (SUDA). This $53 million dust-detection instrument was designed and built at the university’s Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP) by a team of about 60 engineers, scientists, data analysts, and other professionals and nearly two dozen graduate and undergraduate students.
Meet some of the team members who helped create SUDA, which will scoop up ejecta and identify its chemistry, revealing Europa’s surface composition including potential organic molecules. Read more about SUDA in CU Boulder Today: Europa here we come: Colorado space instrument headed to Jupiter’s moon.
By Sara Pratt, Sr. Communications Specialist
Founded a decade before NASA, the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics at the University of Colorado Boulder is on a mission to revolutionize human understanding of the cosmos by pioneering new technologies and approaches to space science. The institute is at the forefront of solar, planetary, and space physics research, climate and space-weather monitoring, and the search for evidence of habitable worlds. LASP is also deeply committed to inspiring and educating the next generation of space explorers. From the first exploratory rocket measurements of Earth’s upper atmosphere to trailblazing observations of every planet in the solar system, LASP continues to build on its remarkable history with a nearly $1 billion portfolio of new research and engineering programs, backed by superb data analysis, reliable mission operations, and skilled administrative support.
