Recent studies reveal surprising obstacles in the quest for extraterrestrial life on Jupiter's moon. Is Europa's ocean truly uninhabitable?
Recent studies reveal surprising obstacles in the quest for extraterrestrial life on Jupiter’s moon. Is Europa’s ocean truly uninhabitable?An ocean lies beneath Europa’s icy shell. But new research suggests the moon’s sea floor may be geologically inert.While Jupiter is the midway planet in our Milky Way, many studies on the planet have characterized it to the point of knowing its features. The planet has a moon called Europa, and scientists have noticed that the moon also has an ocean.
But so far, the latest research suggests that Europa’s rocky interior may be geologically inert. There may be magma struggling to penetrate the sea floor and create hydrothermal vents crucial for sustaining life. This is in contrast to what we have on Earth. Austin Green, a planetary scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, described the findings as a “depressing parade” of conclusions. He stated, “If this volcanism is necessary for habitability, Europa’s ocean is uninhabitable.”And this is just the tip of the iceberg with the setbacks. It follows recent revelations about Europa’s inhospitable conditions.
Two scenarios were explored to assess the strength of the lithosphere, the rigid rock layer in Europa’s interior. The first scenario assumed tough, unaltered seafloor rocks with a deeper ocean, while the second scenario considered shallower waters with weakened rocks due to reactions with water.