The JANUS camera on JUICE

[Nick James]

During yesterday’s Sky Notes I mentioned the JANUS camera which is the main science imaging payload on ESA’s Jupiter-bound spacecraft JUICE. It is interesting for a number of reasons. The first is that, while the optical design is based on the Rosetta OSIRIS camera, I believe it is the first ESA deep-space mission to use a CMOS sensor rather than a CCD. This is the 3 megapixel Te2V CIS115 which is manufactured a few miles from me in Chelmsford. Even in this critical application CMOS is beginning to push out CCDs.

The second, and rather less technical aspect is that the acronym JANUS is actually Latin: “Jovis, Amorum ac Natorum Undique Scrutator”. There are some entertaining machine translations of this online but I’m told it is something like “to observe Jupiter’s lovers and children from all directions”. Jupiter’s moons, of course, are named after the god’s lovers and offspring so this is very appropriate.

I didn’t do Latin at school and my knowledge of the language comes almost entirely from the Life of Brian so if you have a better translation I would be happy to hear it!

[Grant Privett]

And what have the Romans ever done for us?

[Dr Paul Leyland]

Grant Privett wrote:

And what have the Romans ever done for us?

Romanes eunt domus!

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