Europa

A NASA probe is about to launch to an icy moon that could have life

4:41pm September 17, 2024

A NASA mission launching in October will send cameras and other scientific equipment to see, among other things, whether Jupiter's moon Europa could sustain life.

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New analysis has found a source of carbon within Europa, Jupiter's moon that is believed to hold massive amounts of liquid water. This view of the moon was created from images taken by NASA's Galileo spacecraft in the late 1990s.

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A source of carbon — a building block of life — is found on Jupiter's moon Europa

12:19pm September 22, 2023

by Bill Chappell

"The discovery signals a potentially habitable environment in the ocean of Europa," according to the Webb Space Telescope's website.

This is an artist's concept of a plume of water vapor thought to be ejected off of the frigid, icy surface of the Jovian moon Europa, located 500 million miles from the sun.

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Icy Moon Of Jupiter Spews Water Plumes Into Space

11:42am May 14, 2018

by Joe Palca

Researchers have evidence supporting the existence of plumes of water shooting up from the interior of Jupiter's icy moon Europa.

An artist's rendition of the future Europa Clipper probing Jupiter's moon Europa for potential life.

Cassini's Spectacular Legacy — And Nod To The Future

3:12pm September 20, 2017

by Marcelo Gleiser

Following on Cassini's discoveries, NASA aims to probe Jupiter's Europa for potential life. With every new world we discover, we should look back at our own planet with awe, says Marcelo Gleiser.

New NASA evidence suggests that there's a chemical reaction taking place under the moon's icy surface that could provide conditions for life.

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Signs Of Hospitality To Life Found On Saturn's Moon Enceladus

6:26pm April 13, 2017

by Merrit Kennedy

"This is the closest we've come, so far, to identifying a place with some of the ingredients needed for a habitable environment," NASA says. There are signs of a promising reaction under the surface.

Scientists scrutinized Europa's silhouette as the moon passed in front of Jupiter and saw what could be plumes of water vapor erupting from Europa's surface.

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NASA Spots What May Be Plumes Of Water On Jupiter's Moon Europa

4:33pm September 26, 2016

by Nell Greenfieldboyce

If jets of water vapor are indeed erupting from Europa, a spacecraft could potentially fly through them and analyze their chemistry. The moon is believed to have a vast subterranean, saltwater ocean.

Planetary scientists have many worlds they'd like to visit, including Saturn's moon Titan, which has lakes of liquid methane on its surface.

What Comes Next For NASA After Juno? Not Much

4:53pm July 05, 2016

by Nell Greenfieldboyce

Enjoy Juno's trip to Jupiter — after that we'll see a little gap in planetary science missions from the U.S. That's because a NASA budget crunch several years ago left fewer missions in the pipeline.

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An image of Europa released by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., in 1996 by the Galileo spacecraft. NASA says a new probe dedicated to studying the Jovian moon, is going into the development phase.

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NASA: Europa Spacecraft Goes Into Development Phase

8:21pm June 18, 2015

by Scott Neuman

The probe would make dozens of flybys of the Jovian moon in an effort to study its vast subterranean ocean that could harbor life.