Jupiters Europa from Spacecraft Juno
Explanation:
What mysteries might be solved by peering into this crystal ball?
In this case, the ball is actually a moon of
Jupiter,
the crystals are ice, and the moon is not only dirty but cracked
beyond repair.
Nevertheless, speculation is rampant that oceans exist under
Europa's
fractured ice-plains that
could support life.
Europa, roughly the
size of
Earth's Moon, is
pictured here in an image taken
a
few days ago when the
Jupiter-orbiting robotic
spacecraft Juno passed within 325 kilometers of its
streaked and
shifting surface.
Underground
oceans are thought likely because
Europa undergoes
global flexing
due to its changing gravitational attraction with Jupiter during its slightly
elliptical
orbit, and this flexing heats the interior.
Studying Juno's
close-up
images may further humanity's understanding not only of Europa and the
early Solar System but also of the possibility that
life exists elsewhere in the universe.
Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell
(USRA)
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings,
and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris.
Specific
rights apply.
A service of:
LHEA at
NASA /
GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
