MASPEX-Europa: the Europa Clipper neutral gas mass spectrometer investigation
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Published version
Author(s)
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
The MAss Spectrometer for Planetary EXploration (MASPEX) is a high-mass-resolution, high-sensitivity, multi-bounce time-of-flight mass spectrometer (MBTOF) capable of measuring minor species with abundances of sub-parts-per-million in Europa’s sputter-produced and radiolytically modified exosphere and in its oceanic plumes. The goal of the MASPEX-Europa investigation is to determine, through in-situ measurement of the exosphere and plume composition, whether the conditions for habitability exist or have existed on Europa. As conventionally defined, based on our knowledge of Earth life, the three fundamental conditions for habitability are: (1) the presence of liquid water; (2) the presence of organic compounds and the biogenic elements CHNOPS; and (3) a source of energy available for metabolic processes, which for Europa will most probably be chemosynthetic rather than photosynthetic. Condition (1) is already established by previous indirect (magnetic field) measurements, while MASPEX will contribute directly to the evaluation of condition (2) through highly specific compositional measurements in the Europan exosphere and plumes. The composition measurements will also contribute to the test of condition (3) through disequilibrium states of chemical reactions. Thus, the primary goal of MASPEX for Europa Clipper is to assess the habitability of Europa and specifically of its interior ocean. MASPEX has been developed successfully, and its calibration has demonstrated that it meets its specified requirements for sensitivity, dynamic range, and mass resolution. This paper reports the development of the MASPEX scientific investigation, the instrument, its performance, and calibration.
Date Issued
2024-04
Date Acceptance
2024-03-07
Citation
Space Science Reviews, 2024, 220 (3)
ISSN
0038-6308
Publisher
Springer
Journal / Book Title
Space Science Reviews
Volume
220
Issue
3
Copyright Statement
© The Author(s) 2024. Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.
License URL
Identifier
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11214-024-01061-6
Publication Status
Published
Article Number
30
Date Publish Online
2024-04-02