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    Europa tagged posts

    A New Way to Characterize Habitable Planets

    December 31, 2023, Categories  Astronomy/Space

    For decades, science fiction authors have imagined scenarios in which life thrives on the harsh surfaces of Mars or our moon, or in the oceans below the icy surfaces of Saturn’s moon Enceladus and Jupiter’s moon Europa. But the study of habitability—the conditions required to support and sustain life—is not just confined to the pages of fiction. As more planetary bodies in our solar system and beyond are investigated for their potential to host conditions favorable to life, researchers are debating how to characterize habitability.

    While many studies have focused on the information obtained by orbiting spacecraft or telescopes that provide snapshot views of ocean worlds and exoplanets, a new paper emphasizes the importance of investigating complex geophysical factors that can b...

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    Hydrogen Peroxide found on Jupiter’s Moon Ganymede in Higher Latitudes

    July 26, 2023, Categories  Astronomy/Space

    Hydrogen peroxide found on Jupiter's moon Ganymede only in higher latitudes
    Maps of Ganymede’s 3.5 μm H2O2 absorption compared to those of the 3.1 μm Fresnel peaks of water ice and corresponding projections of the U.S. Geological Survey Voyager–Galileo imaging mosaic. H2O2 appears constrained to the upper latitudes, particularly on the leading hemisphere, which exhibits sharp boundaries at approximately ±30° to 35° latitude. These boundaries are roughly coincident with the onset of Ganymede’s polar frost caps and with the latitudes at which most of the impinging Jovian magnetospheric particles can access the surface. Maps of the Fresnel reflection peak of water ice, which generally track the distribution of ice deduced from shorter-wavelength water bands, also show the areas of greatest H2O2 on the leading hemisphere to be enriched in water ice...
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    NASA Study suggests Shallow Lakes in Icy Crust of Jupiter’s moon Europa could erupt

    October 13, 2022, Categories  Astronomy/Space

    This illustration depicts a plume of water vapor that could potentially be emitted from the icy surface of Jupiter’s moon Europa. New research sheds light on what plumes, if they do exist, could reveal about lakes that may be inside the moon’s crust.
     Credit: NASA/ESA/K. Retherford/SWR

    In the search for life beyond Earth, subsurface bodies of water in our outer solar system are some of the most important targets. That’s why NASA is sending the Europa Clipper spacecraft to Jupiter’s moon Europa: There is strong evidence that under a thick crust of ice, the moon harbors a global ocean that could potentially be habitable.

    But scientists believe the ocean isn’t the only water on Europa...

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    Explanation for Formation of Abundant Features on Europa bodes well for search for Extraterrestrial Life

    April 20, 2022, Categories  Astronomy/Space

    This artist’s conception shows how double ridges on the surface of Jupiter’s moon Europa may form over shallow, refreezing water pockets within the ice shell. This mechanism is based on the study of an analogous double ridge feature found on Earth’s Greenland Ice Sheet. (Image credit: Justice Blaine Wainwright)

    Ice-penetrating radar data from Greenland suggests that shallow water pockets may be common within Europa’s ice shell, increasing the potential habitability of the Jovian moon’s ice shell.

    Europa is a prime candidate for life in our solar system, and its deep saltwater ocean has captivated scientists for decades. But it’s enclosed by an icy shell that could be miles to tens of miles thick, making sampling it a daunting prospect...

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