SpaceX has successfully launched the Europa Clipper research probe.

Europa Clipper is one of NASA's most expensive scientific missions to date, with an estimated cost of $5.2 billion.

The probe is designed to study Europa, one of Jupiter's moons, which harbors a vast ocean beneath its icy surface. In the future, the spacecraft will focus on investigating Europa and will attempt to answer the question of whether life could exist in the moon's ocean.

The journey to Europa will take the research probe five and a half years, during which the spacecraft will perform two gravity assists for acceleration: one near Mars in February 2025 and another near Earth in December 2026. These maneuvers will set it on a trajectory to enter its initial orbit around Jupiter in April 2030.

Upon reaching the largest planet in the Solar System, Europa Clipper will execute a series of additional maneuvers to establish its operational orbit. In early 2031, the research probe will begin its primary scientific program and will conduct 49 close flybys of Europa throughout the mission.