The Europa Lander is a proposed orbiter/lander by the Russian Federal Space Agency

Russian Federal Space Agency

The Russian Federal Space Agency , commonly called Roscosmos and abbreviated as FKA and RKA , is the government agency responsible for the Russian space science program and general aerospace research. It was previously the Russian Aviation and Space Agency .Headquarters of Roscosmos are located...

 designed to study the Jovian Moon system, and explore Europa

Europa (moon)

Europa Slightly smaller than Earth's Moon, Europa is primarily made of silicate rock and probably has an iron core. It has a tenuous atmosphere composed primarily of oxygen. Its surface is composed of ice and is one of the smoothest in the Solar System. This surface is striated by cracks and...

.

The Europa Lander would be launched on 2020 with a planned arrival on the year 2024. The probe would be part of the Europa Jupiter System Mission

Europa Jupiter System Mission

The Europa Jupiter System Mission – Laplace was a proposed joint NASA/ESA unmanned space mission slated to launch around 2020 for the in-depth exploration of Jupiter's moons with a focus on Europa, Ganymede and Jupiter's magnetosphere...

 which is being planned to study the Jovian Moon system, and the planet Jupiter

Jupiter

Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the largest planet within the Solar System. It is a gas giant with mass one-thousandth that of the Sun but is two and a half times the mass of all the other planets in our Solar System combined. Jupiter is classified as a gas giant along with Saturn,...

. The orbiter is expected to perform 13 flybys of Ganymede

Ganymede (moon)

Ganymede is a satellite of Jupiter and the largest moon in the Solar System. It is the seventh moon and third Galilean satellite outward from Jupiter. Completing an orbit in roughly seven days, Ganymede participates in a 1:2:4 orbital resonance with the moons Europa and Io, respectively...

, and 4 flybys of Callisto

Callisto (moon)

Callisto named after the Greek mythological figure of Callisto) is a moon of the planet Jupiter. It was discovered in 1610 by Galileo Galilei. It is the third-largest moon in the Solar System and the second largest in the Jovian system, after Ganymede. Callisto has about 99% the diameter of the...

. The orbiter is expected to carry up to 50 kg of scientific instruments, and the lander is expected to carry up to 70 kg of scientific instruments. The mission would be launched on top of the Proton M rocket. The mission would use parts that would be used in the Fobos-Grunt mission. The lander is expected to research the ocean underneath the ice sheet of Europa. It is also expected to research Europa's ice sheet, and atmosphere. It is designed to help confirm the former results from the Pioneer, Voyager, Galileo, and ground-based telescope observations. The orbiter however is expected to do several flybys of other Jovian Moons before being put in a permanent insertion around Europa.

See also

• Russian Federal Space Agency
  Russian Federal Space Agency
  The Russian Federal Space Agency , commonly called Roscosmos and abbreviated as FKA and RKA , is the government agency responsible for the Russian space science program and general aerospace research. It was previously the Russian Aviation and Space Agency .Headquarters of Roscosmos are located...
  
  
• Europa
  Europa (moon)
  Europa Slightly smaller than Earth's Moon, Europa is primarily made of silicate rock and probably has an iron core. It has a tenuous atmosphere composed primarily of oxygen. Its surface is composed of ice and is one of the smoothest in the Solar System. This surface is striated by cracks and...
  
  
• Europa Jupiter System Mission
  Europa Jupiter System Mission
  The Europa Jupiter System Mission – Laplace was a proposed joint NASA/ESA unmanned space mission slated to launch around 2020 for the in-depth exploration of Jupiter's moons with a focus on Europa, Ganymede and Jupiter's magnetosphere...
  
  
• Jupiter
  Jupiter
  Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the largest planet within the Solar System. It is a gas giant with mass one-thousandth that of the Sun but is two and a half times the mass of all the other planets in our Solar System combined. Jupiter is classified as a gas giant along with Saturn,...
  
  
• Ganymede
  Ganymede (moon)
  Ganymede is a satellite of Jupiter and the largest moon in the Solar System. It is the seventh moon and third Galilean satellite outward from Jupiter. Completing an orbit in roughly seven days, Ganymede participates in a 1:2:4 orbital resonance with the moons Europa and Io, respectively...
  
  
• Callisto
  Callisto (moon)
  Callisto named after the Greek mythological figure of Callisto) is a moon of the planet Jupiter. It was discovered in 1610 by Galileo Galilei. It is the third-largest moon in the Solar System and the second largest in the Jovian system, after Ganymede. Callisto has about 99% the diameter of the...