Design exploration and final artwork for NASAs Europa Clipper mission.
NASA Art Director - David Rager
Creative Director - GMUNK
Year - 2022
Hero artwork for the Europa Clipper mission launched in October 2024.
The final design landed on a photorealistic look and feel, focusing on the three main elements of the mission: Jupiter, the moon Europa, and the Clipper spacecraft.
The purpose of the Clipper mission is to survey Europa, the second moon of Jupiter, for signs of life.
Because of it’s icy surface the moon likely has liquid water living underneath the surface; a vital prerequisite for life as we know it.
The project took place over about a three month period in 2022, roughly two years before the mission launch.
Below are the majority of the design exploration that was done during this time.
The project ended up exploring two distinct design directions; one leaned into graphic design fundamentals and the geometric nature of planetary bodies and space exploration. The second direction leaned into a more literal, photographic aesthetic, aiming to envision what being on site, on the surface of Europe could look and feel like.
It was a great pleasure diving into both directions as they presented unique challenges but also inspired equally.
Europa surface explorations
