The Janus COM mechanism onboard the JUICE probe to the Jovian system

After the successful launch of the JUICE (JUpiter ICy moons Explorer) on the 14th of April 2023 all the on board subsystems and instrument are testing their functionalities. The JANUS (Jovis, Amorum ac Natorum Undique. Scrutator) telescope is the imaging system on board the spacecraft and is an optical camera devoted to the study of global, regional and local morphology and processes on the Jovian moons, and to perform mapping of the clouds on Jupiter. Following the heritage of the successful design of the OSIRIS WAC camera, on board the Rosetta mission, the group of researchers at CISAS “Giuseppe Colombo”- Università degli studi di Padova, led by prof. S. Debei, in collaboration with colleagues of the Leonardo spa Company developed the mechanism responsible for the protection of the telescope during cruise phase. The COver Mechanism (COM) provides the external closure of the JANUS Optical Head Unit (OHU). It shields the optical parts from contamination, it is light and dust tight and ...