 An atmospheric probe was released from the spacecraft in July 1995 , entering the planet 's atmosphere on December 7 , 1995 . After a high @-@ g descent into the Jovian atmosphere , the probe discarded the remains of its heat shield , and it <unk> through 150 km of the atmosphere , collecting data for 57 @.@ 6 minutes , before being crushed by the pressure and temperature to which it was subjected ( about 22 times Earth normal , at a temperature of 153 ° C ) . It would have melted thereafter , and possibly <unk> . The Galileo <unk> itself experienced a more rapid version of the same fate when it was deliberately steered into the planet on September 21 , 2003 at a speed of over 50 km / s , in order to avoid any possibility of it crashing into and <unk> Europa . 
