The team behind ESA’s Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (Juice) has been working very hard to prepare the spacecraft for the first test in a year-long environmental test campaign – the ‘Thermal Balance Thermal Vacuum (TBTV)’ test.

In this episode, Juice is in the Large Space Simulator (LSS), a unique facility at the ESA/ESTEC Test Centre that can simulate the vacuum and cold and hot temperature conditions in space, including the Sun itself!

The TBTV started on 17 June 2021 with the closure of the LSS and the ‘pumping-down’, referring to the removal of air within the chamber to a pressure level of 1/100 000 000th of the outside air pressure. This is the closest Juice will come to space conditions while on Earth.

This episode follows the TBTV process, with several team members commenting on different moments.

November 2023 update: This episode is part of a film project that culminated in a two-hour documentary film released in November 2023.

Access the other episodes of ‘The making of Juice’

Credit: ESA/Lightcurve Films, original music by William Zeitler