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NASA launches rocket on mission to search Jupiter's moon 'Europa' for signs of life

Beyond Earth, Jupiter's moon Europa is considered one of the solar system's most promising potentially habitable environments.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — NASA began its "Europa Clipper" mission Monday, in which the agency will explore Jupiter's icy moon Europa for potential life. 

Beyond Earth, Jupiter's moon Europa is considered one of the solar system's most promising potentially habitable environments. 

After an approximately 5-year 1.8-billion-mile journey, Europa Clipper will enter orbit around Jupiter in April 2030, where the spacecraft will conduct a detailed survey of Europa to determine whether the icy world could have conditions suitable for life. 

Europa Clipper is the largest spacecraft NASA has ever developed for a planetary mission. It carries a suite of nine instruments along with a gravity experiment that will investigate an ocean beneath Europa's surface, which scientists believe contains twice as much liquid water as Earth's oceans.

Watch a replay of the launch in the video player above. 

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