Europa's Shallow Waters Don't Signal a Readily Reachable Deep Ocean

A Nature Astronomy study using more realistic models of water flow in Europa’s icy shell finds that shallow surface pools are unlikely to be direct conduits from the moon’s deep ocean, because turbulent water would rapidly lose heat and clog fractures; thus surface water likely originates from melted crust rather than the deep ocean, and future missions should determine its origin rather than assume a connection to the deep ocean.