NASA's Webb Finds Carbon Source on Surface of Jupiter's Moon Europa 26
NASA, in a press release: Jupiter's moon Europa is one of a handful of worlds in our solar system that could potentially harbor conditions suitable for life. Previous research has shown that beneath its water-ice crust lies a salty ocean of liquid water with a rocky seafloor. However, planetary scientists had not confirmed if that ocean contained the chemicals needed for life, particularly carbon. Astronomers using data from NASA's James Webb Space Telescope have identified carbon dioxide in a specific region on the icy surface of Europa.
Analysis indicates that this carbon likely originated in the subsurface ocean and was not delivered by meteorites or other external sources. Moreover, it was deposited on a geologically recent timescale. This discovery has important implications for the potential habitability of Europa's ocean. "On Earth, life likes chemical diversity -- the more diversity, the better. We're carbon-based life. Understanding the chemistry of Europa's ocean will help us determine whether it's hostile to life as we know it, or if it might be a good place for life," said Geronimo Villanueva of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, lead author of one of two independent papers describing the findings. "We now think that we have observational evidence that the carbon we see on Europa's surface came from the ocean. That's not a trivial thing. Carbon is a biologically essential element," added Samantha Trumbo of Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, lead author of the second paper analyzing these data. NASA plans to launch its Europa Clipper spacecraft, which will perform dozens of close flybys of Europa to further investigate whether it could have conditions suitable for life, in October 2024.
Analysis indicates that this carbon likely originated in the subsurface ocean and was not delivered by meteorites or other external sources. Moreover, it was deposited on a geologically recent timescale. This discovery has important implications for the potential habitability of Europa's ocean. "On Earth, life likes chemical diversity -- the more diversity, the better. We're carbon-based life. Understanding the chemistry of Europa's ocean will help us determine whether it's hostile to life as we know it, or if it might be a good place for life," said Geronimo Villanueva of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, lead author of one of two independent papers describing the findings. "We now think that we have observational evidence that the carbon we see on Europa's surface came from the ocean. That's not a trivial thing. Carbon is a biologically essential element," added Samantha Trumbo of Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, lead author of the second paper analyzing these data. NASA plans to launch its Europa Clipper spacecraft, which will perform dozens of close flybys of Europa to further investigate whether it could have conditions suitable for life, in October 2024.
Europa lander (Score:5, Interesting)
Fuck the congresscritters who killed the Europa lander. Fuck you all big time bro.
Re:Europa lander (Score:5, Interesting)
Fuck the congresscritters who killed the Europa lander.
Congress didn't kill it. They didn't mandate it, but if NASA wants to make it a priority, they can.
NASA considered going to Europa but decided to fund a probe to Uranus instead. In my opinion, that was a mistake. Europa is much more interesting. But it was NASA's decision, not Congress.
But the carbon on Europa should surprise no one. Carbon is extremely common in the solar system. Despite global warming, the big question about Earth is not why we have so much carbon, but so little. We should have far more.
The prevailing theory is that most of it was blown away during the Theia impact, when the Earth lost many other volatile elements, including Neon (also very common elsewhere in the solar system) and even water. Planetary simulations predict that Earth should be a "waterworld" like Europe, with oceans hundreds of km deep.
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Yeah probably not gonna want to get too dug into a lander when Europa Clipper will probably give them a lot of good information on how to actually approach such a mission.
Re:Europa lander (Score:5, Informative)
Europa Clipper will launch next year, but won't reach Europa until 2030.
It will take photographs, but won't tell us the most important info: The thickness of the ice.
The basic idea of a lander is to leave a transmitter on the surface, and then use a plutonium-238 RTG to melt through the ice to reach liquid water while unwinding a comm/power tether as it descends.
Data for the Galileo mission indicates the ice is about 20 km thick over a liquid ocean about 80 km deep.
If life is there, it is most likely around volcanic vents, but locating those will be nearly impossible. So we'll look for metabolites in the water.
Re: Europa lander (Score:2)
Re: Europa lander (Score:2)
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NASA considered going to Europa but decided to fund a probe to Uranus instead.
Gas from Uranus.
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Is anyone else surprised that Congress wanted to probe Uranus? I'm not!
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A patient is in an examining room when the proctologist enters.
He says, "Doc, I see three things on the table. I understand why you have latex gloves and lube, but why is there a can of beer?"
The proctologist turns around, opens the door, and yells, "Dammit nurse, I said I wanted a BUTT LIGHT!"
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No, they can't. If NASA makes something a priority that Congress refuses to fund, the result is NASA gets a lower budget overall and the result is the same with even graver consequences. Which means they can't, which means they don't. So your point is purely theoretical.
Flybys of Europa are okay (Score:5, Funny)
As long as we attempt no landing there.
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Re:Flybys of Europa are okay (Score:5, Informative)
that was a quote from space odyssey which was indeed a "prime directive" from the monolith
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And here I was thinking your comment was tongue-in-cheek...or did I just get wooshed a second time?
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That would be terrible, even if they are not sentient.
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You bring up a valid issue of ethics. If life is non-sentient, we do that all the time with agriculture, pesticides, vaccines, and accidentally stepping on a worm. Hell, we even do that to humans by way of the Holocaust, the European invasion of the Americas, and so on.
It's not about them; it's about us.
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We could kill off an entire planet with the flu.
That would be terrible, even if they are not sentient.
To make it less terrible, how about just Florida? :-)
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We could kill off an entire planet with the flu.
Or we could find some alien virus that makes us immortal [wikipedia.org]. Swings and roundabouts.
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We could kill off an entire planet with the flu. That would be terrible, even if they are not sentient.
And we certainly would not want to introduce the wonders of global warming and climate change to a cold world like Europa.
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We could kill off an entire planet with the flu. That would be terrible, even if they are not sentient.
Just knowing there was life elsewhere would be a revelation here. And once we know life is not uncommon we won't feel so bad about killing it.
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I'm sorry, Dave.
No big deal, yet (Score:1)
now taking bets (Score:2)
Now taking bets on finding life on europa before the year 2100.