Introduction ; One of the most important discoveries made by Galileo showed how Jupiter's magnetic field was disrupted in the space around Europa. This measurement strongly implied that a special type of magnetic field is being created (induced) within Europa by a deep layer of some electrically conductive fluid beneath the surface. Based on Europa's icy composition, scientists think the most likely material to create this magnetic signature is a global ocean of salty water. Scientists think Eur...
Type : Orbiter/Flyby, LaunchED : Oct. 14, 2024, Target : Europa: Arrives 2030, Objective : Determine if Europa has conditions suitable to support life
The puzzling, fascinating surface of Jupiter's icy moon Europa looms large in this newly-reprocessed color view, made from images taken by NASA's Galileo spacecraft in the late 1990s.
Astronomers using data from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope have identified carbon dioxide in a specific region on the icy surface of Jupiters moon Europa.
We propose that some of the surface features of Europa may have originated by processes within a model planet in which hydrated silicates are stable.
Europa Clipper Fast Facts ; With its solar arrays deployed, Europa Clipper spans more than 100 feet (about 30 meters) – about the length of a basketball court. ; The spacecraft has 24 engines. ; Europa Clipper will orbit Jupiter and make nearly 50 flybys of Europa.
This artist's concept shows a simulated view from the surface of Jupiter's moon Europa.
Jupiter’s moon Europa has a subsurface ocean beneath an icy crust. Conditions within the ocean are unknown, and it is unclear whether it is connected to the surface. We observed Europa with the Jam...
SUrface Dust Analyzer (SUDA) ; When dust enters SUDA, it passes through a series of metal mesh grids that measure the dust’s speed and trajectory, which identify the dust’s area of origin on Europa’s surface. The dust then strikes a metal target plate. “It splatters dust grains into individual molecules and ionizes some of them,” said SUDA investigation scientist Murthy Gudipati, a planetary scientist and astrophysicist. Once ionized (electrically charged), the molecules must obey SUDA...
Source: NASA/CU Boulder/Glenn Asakawa · Published: August 16, 2022 ; Europa Clipper’s SUrface Dust Analyzer (SUDA) sensor head is shown in a clean room at the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP) at the University of Colorado Boulder. Tiny meteorites eject bits of Europa’s surface into space and a subsurface ocean or in-ice water reservoirs might vent material into space as plumes. To study this, SUDA will scoop up larger particles from these plumes and identify their chemis...