Hubble telescope finds water in Europa's atmosphere
Scientists using the Hubble telescope conducted observations of Europa, one of the moons of Jupiter. This object is considered as a possible place for the development of life in the solar system, reports Phys.org.
The study showed that water vapor is constantly present in the atmosphere of Europe – but only in one hemisphere. Scientists have noticed it before, but considered it to be a consequence of short-term emissions.
New data have shown that steam is present over a wide area of Europe. It is known that the surface of the satellite was covered with an ice shell. But under it, according to experts, a warm ocean is hidden.
Periodically, the ice cracks, and water under pressure escapes outward – much like in the earth's geysers. The height of such fountains can exceed 95 kilometers in height.
The scientists noted that water vapor is consistently present in the rear hemisphere of Europa, located opposite to its orbital motion. They could not establish the reason for this asymmetry.
Research also showed that Europe had a cold climate. The average daily temperature there is -160 degrees Celsius. Under such conditions, water sublimates, that is, it passes from a solid to a gaseous state, bypassing the liquid stage.
The presence of stable water vapor in Europe was of great interest to scientists. They noted that more details will come from future missions: NASA's Europa Clipper and the European Space Agency's (ESA) Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (JUICE) mission.
Earlier it was reported that a tectonic fault was noticed on the moon of Saturn, Titan. It turned out to be similar to the Earth's San Andreas Rift.
