NASA’s Juno mission entered orbit around Jupiter in 2016 to study the planet’s atmosphere and interior.
Juno launched on August 5, 2011, and reached Jupiter on July 4, 2016. It follows a highly elongated polar orbit, allowing its instruments to examine Jupiter’s cloud tops, magnetic field, gravity field, auroras, and deep atmospheric structure.
The mission was designed to investigate how Jupiter formed and whether the planet has a solid core. Its microwave radiometer can look beneath the visible cloud layers, while other instruments study the powerful magnetosphere and giant polar storms.
Juno is sometimes confused with Galileo, NASA’s earlier Jupiter orbiter, which operated from 1995 to 2003. Galileo primarily studied Jupiter’s moons and atmosphere; Juno’s central goal is understanding Jupiter’s origin and internal structure. Juno also made close observations of Jupiter’s moons, including Ganymede, Europa, and Io.