Juno Spacecraft to Carry Three Figurines to Jupiter Orbit

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DC Agle 818-393-9011
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agle@jpl.nasa.gov

Dwayne Brown 202-358-1726
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Andrew Arnold + 45 23 24 1770
LEGO Group, Copenhagen, Denmark
Andrew.Arnold@LEGO.com

Image advisory: 2011-241 Aug. 3, 2011

Juno Spacecraft to Carry Three Figurines to Jupiter Orbit

The full version of this story with accompanying images is at:
http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.cfm?release=2011-241&cid=release_2011-241

PASADENA, Calif. – NASA's Jupiter-bound Juno spacecraft will carry the 1.5-inch likeness of
Galileo Galilei, the Roman god Jupiter and his wife Juno to Jupiter when the spacecraft launches
this Friday, Aug. 5. The inclusion of the three mini-statues, or figurines, is part of a joint
outreach and educational program developed as part of the partnership between NASA and the
LEGO Group to inspire children to explore science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

In Greek and Roman mythology, Jupiter drew a veil of clouds around himself to hide his
mischief. From Mount Olympus, Juno was able to peer through the clouds and reveal Jupiter's
true nature. Juno holds a magnifying glass to signify her search for the truth, while her husband
holds a lightning bolt. The third LEGO crew member is Galileo Galilei, who made several
important discoveries about Jupiter, including the four largest satellites of Jupiter (named the
Galilean moons in his honor). Of course, the miniature Galileo has his telescope with him on the
journey.

An image of the three figurines can be found at:
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/juno/multimedia/lego20110803.html .

The launch period for Juno opens Aug. 5 and extends through Aug. 26. For an Aug. 5 liftoff, the
launch window opens at 8:34 a.m. PDT (11:34 a.m. EDT) and remains open through 9:43 a.m.
PDT (12:43 p.m. EDT). The spacecraft is expected to arrive at Jupiter in 2016. The mission will
investigate the gas giant's origins, structure, atmosphere and magnetosphere. Juno's color camera
will provide close-up images of Jupiter, including the first detailed glimpse of the planet's poles.

NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., manages the Juno mission for the principal
investigator, Scott Bolton, of Southwest Research Institute in San Antonio. The Juno mission is
part of the New Frontiers Program managed at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in
Huntsville, Ala. Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver, built the spacecraft. Launch
management for the mission is the responsibility of NASA's Launch Services Program at the
Kennedy Space Center in Florida. JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology in
Pasadena.

More information about Juno is online at http://www.nasa.gov/juno and
http://missionjuno.swri.edu . You can follow the mission on Twitter at
http://www.twitter.com/NASAJuno .

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