Welcome to our new post! In this article, I will present to you some curiosities about the moon Europa. Get ready to learn amazing things about this Jupiter moon and surprise your friends with these interesting facts.
Europa is one of the 80 moons that orbit the planet Jupiter. This moon is about 1/4 the size of Earth and takes 3.5 Earth days to complete an orbit around Jupiter.
The name of this moon is a tribute to a woman who was abducted by Zeus in Greek mythology.
Why is this Jupiter moon so promising for life?
One of the essential factors for life is water. While analyzing our solar system, water has been found in a gaseous state in the clouds, but it has never been found in a liquid state on other planets.
This is where the importance of investigating the moon Europa comes in. Although only solid water has been found on its surface so far, there is a possibility that closer to its core, the temperature is higher, allowing the existence of liquid water.
Which expeditions have managed to fly over this Jupiter moon?
The first spacecraft to approach the moon Europa were Pioneer 10 and 11 in 1970, but only Voyager 1 and 2 managed to take pictures of the planet's surface.
Did you know that the Galileo spacecraft has gathered so much interesting information about Jupiter that NASA decided to extend its mission by 2 more years? In total, this probe managed to fly over Europa 12 times.
And now you might be wondering: what important things has this probe discovered? Do you remember the theory that beneath all the ice on Europa, there is water that I just mentioned? It turns out that this probe managed to discover information that could support this theory. Galileo detected an alteration in Jupiter's magnetic field near its moon Europa. This alteration can be justified by a large amount of electrically charged fluid beneath the surface, inducing a special magnetic field on Europa that, when interacting with Jupiter's, causes this alteration. A global ocean of saltwater could be responsible for this event.
The promising ocean of Europa
Scientists believe that the ice layer covering the surface of this moon is about 15 to 25 kilometers thick, while the ocean beneath it could be 60 to 150 kilometers deep. If this theory is confirmed, Europa has more than double the water of Earth.
In 2019, NASA detected water vapor on the surface of Europa.
Is Europa the only moon with an ocean?
The answer is no. Saturn's moon Enceladus also has a confirmed ocean.
Why is there a possibility of life on the moon Europa?
Scientists claim that there could be microorganisms in the frozen zones of the ocean on this moon in a state of latency, waiting for more favorable conditions for life.
What conditions would have to exist for life to be possible?
Liquid water, some chemical elements, a heat source, and enough time for life to develop. Assuming that Europa's ocean has existed since the beginning of our solar system, there would have been enough time for life to develop on the planet.
There is still no concrete evidence, although these assumptions are supported by plausible theories; at present, they are only theories. Once these assumptions are verified, this moon will fulfill 2 of the minimum requirements for hosting life.
The heat source has a significant impact on life on Earth, allowing the growth of plants through photosynthesis, which in turn feeds other food chains. Unlike Earth, probable life on Europa is beneath the ice, preventing these organisms from coming into contact with the Sun. However, it would still be possible for organisms to survive due to chains of chemical reactions.
An interesting fact about this moon is that due to the radiation it receives from Jupiter, it could not host life on its surface, only in the ocean beneath the ice, which is precisely the most likely place for life for all the aforementioned reasons.
When compared to our Moon, the moon Europa has a more regular and brighter surface. Did you know that Europa is 5.5 times brighter than our Moon? The ice on its surface allows it to reflect more sunlight.
The surface of this moon is also smoother than that of other ice moons, although Europa's surface is not entirely smooth; cracks containing dark frozen fluid are found all over the surface of this moon.
So far, no signs of activity have been found on the surface of the moon Europa, but due to the existence of these cracks, it is assumed that there was activity on its surface in the past.
NASA scientists believe that the fact that the surface of this moon is more homogeneous than others could be due to the following factors: a young surface or erosions (ice or volcanoes) that reshaped the planet's surface.
📚 Data source:
https://science.nasa.gov/jupiter/moons/europa/facts/
https://science.nasa.gov/jupiter/moons/europa/exploration/
https://science.nasa.gov/jupiter/moons/europa/
https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Europa_(sat%C3%A9lite)
https://www.bbc.com/mundo/noticias-39406392
Blanc, M. et al (2020). Joint Europa Mission (JEM): a multi-scale study of Europa to characterize its habitability and search for extant life. Planetary and Space Science, 193, [104960]. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pss.2020.104960
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