Illustration of water plumes (three,white) erupting from the surface of Jupiter's moon Europa (right). Also seen are the moon Io (centre) and Jupiter (left). Europa's surface is thought to consist of an ocean of liquid water covered by a thick layer of ice. It is thought the water beneath the surface ice is kept liquid by heat from tidal effects induced in Europa's interior by Jupiter's gravitational field. The presence of liquid water allows for the possibility of life developing on Europa. The plumes provide an opportunity for Europa's water to be sampled for life without the need to land on the moon and drill through its ice | |
Licence : | Droits gérés |
Crédit: | Science Photo Library / Bacon, G. / NASA / ESA / STSCI |
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