Presentation Information
[PPS01-02]The Ganymede Laser Altimeter (GALA) for the Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (JUICE): Overview and Japanese contribution
*Keigo Enya1, Masanori Kobayashi2, Jun Kimura3, Hiroshi Araki4, Hirotomo Noda4, Noriyuki Namiki4, Shoko Oshigami1, Ko Ishibashi2, Kazuyuki Touhara1, Yoshifumi Saito1, Kay Lingenauber5, Reinald Kallenbach5, Hauke Hussmann5 (1.JAXA/ISAS, 2.CIT, 3.Osaka University, 4.NAOJ, 5.DLR)
Keywords:
JUICE,GALA,Jupiter,Ganymede
The Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (JUICE) is a science mission led by the European Space Agency, being developed for launch in April 2023. The Ganymede Laser Altimeter (GALA) is an instrument onboard JUICE, whose main scientific goals are to understand ice tectonics based on topographic data, the subsurface structure by measuring tidal response, and small-scale roughness and albedo of the surface. In addition, from the perspective of astrobiology, it is imperative to study the subsurface ocean scientifically. The development of GALA has proceeded through an international collaboration between Germany (the lead), Japan, Switzerland, and Spain. Within this framework, the Japanese team (GALA-J) is responsible for developing three receiver modules: the Backend Optics (BEO), the Focal Plane Assembly (FPA), and the Analog Electronics Module (AEM). Like the German team, GALA-J also developed software to simulate the performance of the entire GALA system (performance model). In this presentation, we show an overview of GALA and Japanese contribution to it.