Europa the second moon of Jupiter, is about 90 percent the size of Earth’s Moon With a diameter of 3,100 kilometers.
Europa orbits Jupiter at about 671,000 kilometers from the planet, which itself orbits the Sun at a distance of roughly 5.2 astronomical units.
Light from the Sun takes about 45 minutes to reach Europa.
Europa orbits Jupiter every 3.5 days and is locked by gravity to Jupiter, so the same hemisphere of the moon always faces the planet.
NASA's Galileo spacecraft shows an intricate pattern of linear fractures on the icy surface of Europa.
A reddish-brown material likely contains salts and sulfur compounds that have been mixed with the water ice and modified by radiation. This surface composition may hold clues to the moon's potential as a habitable world.
Europa’s ocean lies below a shell of ice, probably 15 to 25 kilometers thick and has an estimated depth of 60 to 150 kilometers. While evidence for an internal ocean is strong, its presence awaits confirmation.
NASA announced that researchers using the Hubble Space Telescope found evidence that Europa might be actively venting water into space.
If confirmed by follow-up observations, the plumes of water could be studied by future missions.
Europa has abundant water and the right chemical elements, but an energy source on Europa has been difficult to confirm.
If we eventually find some form of life at Europa, it may look like microbes, or maybe something more complex.
Credit:
NASA.GOV
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