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Europa

All articles tagged with #europa

space11 days ago•14 min saved

Europa Could Have More Ocean Than Earth, Enceladus Sprays Its Ocean into Space

Earth isn’t the Solar System’s sole water world: Europa’s subsurface ocean may hold about 3 billion cubic kilometres of liquid water—roughly twice the volume of Earth’s oceans—while Enceladus vents ocean material into space via its south-pole plumes, offering direct sampling opportunities. The concept of a single “ultimate water world” is too simplistic; water exists in diverse forms—volume, location, chemistry and accessibility—across the Solar System, and neither moon has found life evidence yet.

via Space Daily|

#enceladus #europa #oceans

space20 days ago•11 min saved

Europa's Dark Side Might Glow Colorfully, Revealing Ocean Clues

Lab experiments simulating Europa’s icy surface show that high-energy electrons can energize salts in the ice to emit faint visible light—green, blue, or white—on the moon’s night side. The glow depends on composition and radiation, offering a potential chemical map of surface salts and, indirectly, clues about the subsurface ocean. It’s not a direct ocean readout, and the signal could be faint or variable, but Europa Clipper may test whether such nightside emission exists and helps link surface chemistry to the hidden ocean.

via Space Daily|

#europa #ocean #radiation

space23 days ago•133 min saved

Europa’s Hidden Ocean May Not Reveal Itself in Surface Plumes

New computer simulations suggest Europa’s icy crust is a formidable barrier: liquid water rising through fractures would churn and rapidly cool, likely freezing into frazil ice before reaching near-surface depths. Therefore, shallow liquid pockets seen by the Europa Clipper (arriving around 2030) may reflect local ice melting rather than direct upwellings from the deep ocean, affecting how scientists interpret potential habitability signals and where to look for clues during future missions (also relevant to JUICE).

via Space|

#astrobiology #europa #europa-clipper

science25 days ago•14 min saved

Europa's Hidden Ocean Could Surpass Earth's Seas, Fueled by Jupiter's Tidal Rhythm

Europa, though smaller than Earth’s Moon, may hide a global ocean tens to about 150 km deep beneath an ice shell and could contain more liquid water than all Earth's oceans; the ocean remains liquid due to tidal heating from Jupiter, amplified by the Io–Europa–Ganymede Laplace resonance, plus radiogenic heat and an insulating ice shell. Evidence comes from magnetic induction data and surface geology, and NASA’s Europa Clipper (launched 2024) will fly by 49 times to measure ice thickness, ocean depth, salinity, and possible chemical gradients to assess habitability.

via Space Daily|

#europa #europa-clipper #laplace-resonance

science-space1 month ago•12 min saved

Ocean Worlds Grow: Subsurface Seas Likely Beneath More Outer Solar System Moons

A growing body of evidence suggests several outer‑solar‑system moons—Europa, Ganymede, Callisto, Enceladus and Titan among the strongest cases—may harbor global oceans beneath ice, inferred from magnetic, gravitational and geological signals. Mimas, Triton and some Uranian moons remain plausible additions. Archived mission data continue to yield insights, and future missions like Europa Clipper and ESA’s Juice will further test these ocean models, even as not every frozen moon is expected to host liquid water.

via Space Daily|

#enceladus #europa #ocean-worlds

space1 month ago•14 min saved

Europa's ocean lies beneath a 29-kilometer ice shell, new Juno data suggest

A Juno Microwave Radiometer study estimates an average conductive ice shell of about 29 ± 10 km over Europa’s ocean in the observed region, favoring a thick-shell interpretation. The result is model-based and region-specific, not a global map, and factors like salt content or convection could shift the thickness. This finding tightens the barrier between surface ice and the ocean and underscores why Europa Clipper’s radar, gravity and other measurements are needed to test regional variation and the moon’s habitability potential.

via Space Daily|

#europa #habitability #ice-shell

science1 month ago•2 min saved

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.

via Gizmodo|

#europa #icy-crust #nature-astronomy

space1 month ago•13 min saved

Europa's Hidden Ocean Could Hold More Than Twice Earth's Ocean Water

New evidence from magnetic data, surface geology, and interior models points to a global salty ocean beneath Europa’s ice, potentially containing more than twice Earth's ocean water and kept warm by tidal flexing from Jupiter; the Europa Clipper mission will map ice thickness, ocean depth, and chemistry to assess habitability, though no direct measurements have yet confirmed life or sea depth.

via Space Daily|

#europa #habitability #jupiter

space1 month ago•13 min saved

Europa's Hidden Ocean Could Surpass Earth's Seas, Kept Liquid by Jupiter's Tides

Europa, Jupiter's icy moon, may harbor a global salty ocean beneath its shell—potentially twice Earth's oceans—kept liquid by tidal heating from Jupiter's gravity. Evidence from Galileo's magnetic measurements and NASA's Europa Clipper mission suggests a conductive ocean beneath a likely thick ice shell, with no drilling yet. Clipper will conduct ~50 flybys using radar, magnetic, gravity, and thermal instruments to map the ice, probe the ocean, and assess habitability, not life detection. The ocean's persistence depends on ice thickness, heat transport, and chemistry, making Europa a leading target for understanding habitable worlds beyond Earth.

via Space Daily|

#astrobiology #europa #jupiter

science1 month ago•13 min saved

Europa's Buried Ocean: Galileo’s Point Sparks a Vast Subsurface Sea

From Galileo's 1610 sighting of a tiny moon near Jupiter, scientists now consider Europa to host a global salty ocean buried under kilometers of ice, potentially larger than Earth's oceans. Magnetic data and surface geology suggest a 60–150 km-deep ocean under a 15–25 km ice shell, but no direct samples exist yet. NASA's Europa Clipper will study the ice shell, ocean, and chemistry to assess habitability without drilling through the ice or directly seeking life.

via Space Daily|

#europa #europa-clipper #ice-shell

space2 months ago•11 min saved

Europa's Fresh Surface Hints at a Hidden Ocean

Europa’s surface is unusually crater-free, implying a young, constantly renewed ice crust. Tidal heating from Jupiter sustains internal warmth, likely keeping a global salty ocean beneath the ice; ridges, chaos terrain and possible plumes point to ongoing resurfacing that erases craters. The Europa Clipper and ESA’s JUICE missions will map the ice and probe for direct ocean evidence to test these ideas.

via Space Daily|

#europa #icy-moon #jupiter

space2 months ago•20 min saved

Galileo’s endgame: NASA crashes the probe to protect Europa’s hidden ocean

NASA kept the Galileo spacecraft alive for 14 years despite a jammed antenna and brutal radiation, then deliberately steered it into Jupiter in 2003 to destroy it—not because it failed but to prevent Earth microbes from contaminating Europa, where data showed a likely subsurface saltwater ocean. The decision cemented planetary protection as a core principle, guiding missions like Europa Clipper and JUICE to study possible ocean worlds without risking contamination, illustrating how discovery can carry protective costs for future exploration.

via 19FortyFive|

#europa #galileo #nasa

space-and-spaceflight2 months ago•15 min saved

A 13-Year Radar Sweep Sheds Light on Europa’s Porous Ice

A 13-year radio study of Europa (2011–2024) finds its radar albedo is unusually bright and the scattering pattern matches clean, porous ice, placing new limits on how deep radar can probe below the icy crust and offering important context for upcoming missions like Europa Clipper and Juice.

via Gizmodo|

#europa #ice #note-extra-tag-not-allowed

science3 months ago•36 min saved

Europa Plumes Under Scrutiny: New Findings Challenge Previous Claims

A new analysis questions earlier interpretations of Europa’s water plumes, suggesting signals previously attributed to plume activity may be misread or require alternative explanations, underscoring the need for fresh observations to confirm whether Europa hosts liquid water and potential habitability.

via Yahoo|

#astrobiology #europa #jupiter-moon

space3 months ago•13 min saved

Galileo’s Swan Song: NASA Sacrificed a Probe to Shield Europa’s Hidden Ocean

In 2003 NASA deliberately crashed the Galileo spacecraft into Jupiter to prevent a potential contaminant from a drifting probe reaching Europa, after data suggested a subsurface salty ocean on Europa (and discoveries about other Jovian moons). The decision reflected planetary-protection rules: if a world could harbor life, a failing or abandoned spacecraft must not risk introducing Earth biology. Galileo’s extended mission delivered key findings about Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto, and its disposal set a precedent for how future outer-planet missions are planned to avoid contaminating ocean worlds like Europa.

via Space Daily|

#europa #galileo #nasa