Family-level launch record combining canonical variants, historical missions, public cadence forecasts, and available payload performance specs.
Historical missions are grouped by actual launch year. Forecast cadence uses family-level launch-rate rows.
| Year | Historical missions | Forecast launches |
|---|---|---|
| 1968 | 1 | 0 |
| 1969 | 1 | 0 |
| 1970 | 1 | 0 |
| 1971 | 1 | 0 |
Payload capacity by variant and target orbit when structured capacity rows are available.
| Variant | Orbit | Capacity | Altitude | Inclination | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
No performance specsNo structured payload capacity rows are linked to this vehicle family. | |||||
Latest launched missions using variants in this family.
| Mission | Variant | Launch |
|---|---|---|
| Launch 1971-F10 | Europa II | Nov 5, 1971 |
| Launch 1970-U02 | Europa I | Jun 12, 1970 |
| Launch 1969-F09 | Europa I | Jul 2, 1969 |
| Launch 1968-F09 |
Canonical variants rolled up into this launch vehicle family.
| Variant | Stages | Missions | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
Europa I | Not stated | 3 | Retired |
Europa II | Not stated | 1 | Retired |
Europa I |
| Nov 29, 1968 |
Upcoming mission rows with announced launch timing.
| Mission | Variant | Announced |
|---|---|---|
No forecasted missionsNo upcoming announced mission rows are linked to this vehicle family. | ||
Europa has a global subsurface ocean beneath its icy crust that is kept liquid by tidal heating from Jupiter.
Europa’s irradiated surface can generate oxidants and other reactive compounds that may be transported into its ocean.
Europa Clipper launched in 2024 on a mission to Jupiter’s moon Europa.
AST SpaceMobile won the first Space Development Agency award for the Europa effort to demonstrate low-latency tactical satellite communications using the company’s commercial spacecraft.
The article states that Europa requires deep shielding or subsurface habitats because Jupiter’s radiation bombards its surface with high-energy particles.
The article describes Europa and Enceladus as having gravity of about 0.13 to 0.18 g.
The Space Development Agency awarded AST SpaceMobile a $30 million prime contract for the HALO Europa Track 2 commercial solutions program.
The ASU payload LEO-TIMS is a compact thermal-infrared imager derived from heritage instruments ASU previously flew to Mars and planned to fly to Europa, adapted for low Earth observations on a suborbital flight.
The Europa Track 2 effort will conduct a series of on-orbit demonstrations to validate seamless integration with existing tactical military radios.
The Europa Track 2 award supports the Department of Defense’s vision for resilient, hybrid architectures, including the Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture (PWSA), by enabling scalable, interoperable capabilities through commercial infrastructure.
The U.S. Space Development Agency awarded a demonstration contract to AST SpaceMobile USA for the Europa Track 2 Commercial Solutions program.
The Europa Track 2 contract was executed under the Hybrid Acquisition for proliferated Low-earth Orbit (HALO) program and has a total contract value of approximately $30 million.
The Europa Track 2 demonstrations will evaluate how commercial satellite infrastructure can be applied for defense applications and deliver data products as-a-service to the Space Development Agency.
Under the Europa Track 2 effort, AST SpaceMobile will conduct a series of on-orbit demonstrations to show that its satellites can integrate with existing tactical military radios and communications systems.
Work under HALO Europa is aligned with the Department of War vision for resilient, hybrid space architectures, including the Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture, by providing scalable and interoperable capabilities using existing commercial assets.
The Europa Track 2 test campaigns are intended to validate how commercial satellite infrastructure can be adapted quickly for defense missions and how data products can be delivered as a service to the Space Development Agency.
In February 2026, the Space Development Agency awarded a $30 million HALO Europa contract to explore using commercial constellations for tactical military communications as-a-service.
The Jupiter Icy Moons Orbiter was a planned nuclear-powered spacecraft intended to use a reactor and high-power electric propulsion to reach and orbit Jupiter and to visit Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto.
The Space Development Agency released the Europa solicitation seeking proposals for Track 1, a two-satellite demonstration of advanced tactical waveforms requiring the launch of new spacecraft, and Track 2, commercial solutions demonstrating novel waveforms using existing space assets.
The JIMO mission plan envisioned spending two to three months each at Ganymede and Callisto and one month at Europa, with the overall mission possibly completing in 2025 if Io were also explored.