The program was conceived in 2011 as a potential NASA Discovery mission launching as early as 2022, and evolved over several years once it did not receive funding for the 2013–2015 Discovery Mission program cycle.
Programmet var tänkt under 2011 som ett potentiellt NASA Discovery-uppdrag som startade redan 2022 och utvecklades under flera år när det inte fick finansiering för Discovery Mission-programcykeln 2013-2015.