October 15, 2024 at 9:08 AM NASA/JPL-Caltech/SETI Institute Europa? NASA's trying to answer that question with the launch of the Europa Clipper on Monday. The spacecraft is headed toward Jupiter's moon Europa, which scientists believe has a massive saltwater ocean beneath its surface that's a prime location for extraterrestrial life. But don't get your hopes up (or get scared) about us making contact with aliens. The Europa Clipper is just trying to understand if the ocean could even support life. That might not be as exciting as snapping photos of little green people, but it's still a big deal. It's the largest interplanetary spacecraft NASA has ever built, weighing 3.5 tons with wings that extend 100 feet wide. It won't arrive at Europa until April 2030, but that hasn't dimmed the space community's enthusiasm. One NASA director said these kinds of missions are "modern cathedrals" and "generational quests." SpaceX