PASADENA, Calif., Aug. 31 (UPI) -- NASA's Juno mission to Jupiter has successfully changed its orbit in preparation for a 2016 arrival at the giant gas planet, the space agency says.
In performing its first deep-space maneuver, the spacecraft initiated the first of two planned firings of its main engine to refine the spacecraft's trajectory, setting the stage for a gravity assist from a flyby of Earth Oct 9, 2013, that will send it on its way for arrival at Jupiter July 4, 2016, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., said Thursday.