The Lucy spacecraft — designed to explore the Trojan asteroids of Jupiter — prepares for take-off

On 30 July, an Air Force C-17 cargo plane touched down on a runway at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. A massive shipping container was rolled off the craft. The precious cargo inside, revealed in an Astrotech cleanroom, was examined, and cleared by inspectors. The Lucy spacecraft had arrived safely at the space center, readying for its upcoming historic mission. This vehicle, designed by the Southwest Research Institute, will be the first to visit the Trojan asteroids which accompany Jupiter on its orbit around the Sun. If everything goes according to plan, an Atlas V 401 rocket will lift…

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