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Europa

Jupiter'south moon Europa has long been ane on of the most enticing potential homes for life in the solar organisation. Well, other than Earth. While Earth is in the habitable zone with liquid h2o and a thick atmosphere, Europa is a small frozen moon orbiting a gas giant, However, lurking under its frozen surface could be liquid h2o. Scientists have even speculated nigh tectonic activity on Europa. Information technology's nothing similar plate tectonics on Earth, but it could fuel the development of life, according to a new analysis.

According to researchers from Chocolate-brown Academy in Rhode Island, it's possible for the water ice shell of Europa to showroom tectonic activity similar to Earth. Specifically, the squad led past assistant professor Brandon Johnson looked at subduction. That'south when ane tectonic plate slides under another, which can cause volcanic activity and earthquakes on Globe. On Europa, it could deliver much-needed nutrients to a biosphere within the planet.

The researchers used calculator simulations to determine if subduction is possible on Europa. It'southward a very different environment for geological activity for two reasons. Starting time, we're talking about water ice plates over summit of water rather than rock above molten rock. Secondly, subduction on Earth is driven by temperature differentials (i.e. density) between the plates and the drapery. Europa doesn't take that, but Johnson'south team showed that varying common salt content could drive the same procedure.

At that place's good show Europa's water ice beat out consists of 2 layers: a hard outer layer, and an inner convecting layer that is slightly warmer due to tidal forces from Jupiter's gravity. The model developed for this study assumed varying amounts of salt content in the surface shell. The salt is denser than water ice, so it would allow the difficult surface ice to subduct into the warm inner layers of Europa.

This process could be vital to the development of life on Europa because the surface is known to be rich in oxidants, substances that pull electrons off other molecules. These include oxygen, iodine, bromine, and more than complicated molecules like nitric acid. Oxidants tin provide chemical energy for life that doesn't rely on free energy from the lord's day.

Subduction is a very boring process that's difficult to observe, only a time to come probe might exist able to prove or disprove this hypothesis. The team suggests tectonic action on Europa leave cause telltale signs like upwelling of high-salt ice and cryovolcanism. We still don't know if anything is alive in Europa, but this could be another piece of the puzzle.