At a Glance

NASA's Juno spacecraft achieved orbit around Jupiter Monday nightThe mission to map out Jupiter's surface will last 20 months and cost $1.1 billion

NASA received a much-welcomed message from its Juno spacecraft Monday night from 540 million miles across the solar system, which confirmed that it had successfully started orbiting Jupiter, the largest planet in our solar system.

"Welcome to Jupiter!" at NASA's Jet Propulsion Lab in Pasadena, California, prompting the Juno team to let out a congratulatory cheer, according to CNN.

"This is phenomenal," said Geoff Yoder, acting administrator for NASA's Science Mission Directorate.

To slow down enough to be pulled into orbit, Juno had to make a risky moveby firing its main engine for 35 minutes to slow the spacecraft by about 1,212 miles per hour from its original speed of 150,000 miles per hour.

"Preliminary looks are that the spacecraft is performing well ," said Guy Beutelschies, Director of Interplanetary Missions at Lockheed Martin Space Systems, the company that built the spacecraft.

Rick Nybakken, a Juno project manager, told USA Today for Juno's five-year, 1.8-billion-mile journey through space to reach the Gas Giant.

Juno's next move is to take a series of risky dives beneath Jupiter’s intense radiation belts where it will study the planet from as close as 2,600 miles above the cloud tops.

Scientists promise stunning photos in the days ahead from the planet that may hold the key to the origins of our universe.

Here are 10 things to know about the mission.

1. The Mission

Juno's mission is to get a glimpse of Jupiter's surface through the planet's cloud-soaked atmosphere and map the interior from a unique vantage point above the poles. Some questions NASA hopes to answer: How much water exists? Is there a solid core? Why are Jupiter's southern and northern lights the brightest in the solar system?

2. The Fifth Planet

Jupiter is the fifth planet from the sun and is the heftiest planet in the solar system. Known as a gas giant, Jupiter is really just a ball of hydrogen and helium, unlike rocky Earth and Mars. Believed to have been the first planet to form shortly after the sun, Jupiter may hold the key to understanding how Earth and the rest of the solar system developed.

3. How Close Will Juno Get to the Surface?

Juno is expected to come within 3,000 miles of Jupiter's clouds - closer than any previous mission - to map the planet's gravity and magnetic fields.

4. Before Arrival to Jupiter

In the nearly five years and 1.8 billion miles it took Juno to reach Jupiter, the spacecraft toured the inner solar system, followed by a swing past Earth before journeying beyond the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.

5. Armored Spacecraft

According to AZCentral, . Its computer and electronics are sealed in a titanium vault to shield them from harmful radiation. Despite every precaution, Juno is expected to receive radiation hits equal to more than 100 million dental X-rays during the mission.

6. Solar-Powered

Juno became the first spacecraft to cruise this far out into the solar system powered solely by the sun, beating Europe's Rosetta spacecraft. A trio of massive solar wings sticks out from Juno like blades from a windmill, generating 500 watts of power to run its nine instruments.

7. Second Mission to Jupiter

Juno is the second mission to explore Jupiter. Galileo, launched in 1989, orbited Jupiter for 14 years, sending back stunning views of the planet and its numerous moons. It also discovered signs of an ocean beneath the icy surface of Europa, considered by scientists as a primary target in the search for life beyond Earth.

8. Famous Red Spot

Jupiter's Great Red Spot has mesmerized scientists and the public for years. It is hoped Juno will shed more light on the monster storm, which, according to recent observations by the Hubble Space Telescope seems to be shrinking.

9. Juno Will Circle the Gas Giant 37 Times Over 20 Months

Juno will make 37 trips around the giant planet. Had Juno failed to enter orbit on Independence Day, plan B would have been to orbit the sun instead.

10. Juno's Demise

At the end of its mission in 2018, Juno will deliberately dive into Jupiter's atmosphere and disintegrate. Scientists planned the spacecraft's purposeful demise to prevent any chance of accidentally crashing into the planet's potentially habitable moons.

Juno's mission is to get a glimpse of the of Jupiter's surface through the planet's cloud-socked atmosphere and map the interior from a unique vantage point above the poles. Some questions NASA hopes to answer: How much water exists? Is there a solid core? Why are Jupiter's southern and northern lights the brightest in the solar system?