JPL
Science & Engineering abbreviation · Astronomy & Space
| Stands for | Jet Propulsion Laboratory |
|---|---|
| Categories | Science & Engineering |
JPL stands for Jet Propulsion Laboratory, an astronomy & Space abbreviation.
NASA research center in Southern California, managed by the California Institute of Technology, that builds and operates most of the agency's robotic planetary missions, including the Mars rovers, Voyager, Cassini and Europa Clipper. JPL also runs the Deep Space Network that communicates with distant spacecraft.
Example: JPL engineers celebrated as Perseverance touched down in Jezero Crater.
Usage notes
JPL grew from rocket experiments by Caltech students led by Frank Malina in 1936 and built Explorer 1, the first US satellite, in 1958. Mission controllers keep a tradition of eating "good luck peanuts" during critical events, dating to the Ranger 7 Moon mission in 1964. Its campus is in La Cañada Flintridge, with a Pasadena mailing address.
Related abbreviations
More astronomy & Space abbreviations
- HZ – Habitable zone
- IAU – International Astronomical Union
- ISRO – Indian Space Research Organisation
- ISS – International Space Station
- JAXA – Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency
- JD – Julian date (Julian Day number)
- JWST – James Webb Space Telescope
- KBO – Kuiper belt object
- kpc – Kiloparsec
- LCDM – Lambda cold dark matter
- LEM – Lunar Excursion Module
- LEO – Low Earth orbit