[P-PS01] Outer Solar System Exploration Today, and Tomorrow

[PPS01-P02] The Ganymede Laser Altimeter (GALA) for the Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (JUICE): Current status and onboard commissioning

*Keigo Enya¹, Masanori Kobayashi², Jun Kimura³, Hiroshi Araki⁴, Hirotomo Noda⁴, Noriyuki Namiki⁴, Shoko Oshigami¹, Kazuyuki Touhara¹, Yoshifumi Saito¹, Kay Lingenauber⁵, Alexander Stark⁵, Hauke Hussmann⁵ (1.ISAS, 2.CIT, 3.Osaka University, 4.NAOJ, 5.DLR)

Keywords:JUICE, GALA, Jupiter, Ganymede, onboard comissioning

The Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (JUICE) was successfully launched using an Arian 5 rocket from Guiana Space Center on 14 April in 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. GALA was developed 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). The first power-on and commissioning of GALA in orbit was performed on 15 May 2023. As the results, we confirmed that all checked house-keeping (HK) data, functions, and performances were normal. End-to-end testing using the transmitted laser pulse detection path was successful as well. In this presentation, we show the latest status and on-orbit tests of GALA.