The idea of discovering a source of life (even in bacteriological form) on another planet is the dream of many scientists. How would we react if we knew from a reliable source that life exists elsewhere? If until now no tangible proof has been provided on this subject, on the occasion from a new study published on April 19, 2022 in NatureCommunicationswe can once again raise the possibility of extraterrestrial life in our solar system. We take stock of the matter.
Europa, a moon of Jupiter
Jupiter’s moon Europa is a prime candidate for extraterrestrial habitability in our solar system. We have known for many years in fact that if there is life in our solar system, then there is a good chance that it is Europe that shelters it.
Jupiter’s icy moon, Europe, indeed shelters an ocean under an external layer of ice, and that, we already knew it. The thickness and structure of this ice shell are, however, not well known.but new models suggest that it could have a thickness 20 to 30 km, with a layer of hot ice under a stiff, cold crust. However, according to a new study by Riley Culberg, Dustin M. Schroeder and Gregor Steinbruggeand recently published in the journal NatureCommunicationsif we rely on how greenland works to understand Europe, we imagine very well that the external layer of ice of this moon surmounting its ocean actually forms a large dynamic system: and this is of great interest to researchers.
The surface of Europe is young, geologically active, and has a wide variety of landforms, including ridges, valleys, bands, and chaotic terrain. Of these, double crests are the most common, consisting of pairs of quasi-symmetrical ridges, flanking a median hollow.
A growing body of work thus suggests that shallow waters could be essential, not only for the formation of double ridgesbut also for the dynamics, exchanges and, ultimately, the habitability of the European ice sheet. The study carried out thus declares :
The presence of liquid groundwater is the only reasonable interpretation of the observed reflectivity and attenuation signals for the interface that we identify as groundwater.
A discovery that gives hope
to summarize the work done, shallow pockets of liquid water were therefore detected just below the double ridges. But how to make a link with possible traces of life ? Well, the dynamics of this system allows exchanges with the outside (and in particular exchanges with chemical elements which, as on Earth, could hypothetically lead to the creation of life). Dustin Schroederco-author of this study and professor of geophysics at Stanford University, says on this subject:
There is a possibility that life might have a chance inside the water pockets of the ice sheet.
Europe includes a multitude of double crests some of which reach 300 meters, with stretches separating them sometimes going up to 1 kilometer. For scientists today, if there is any trace of life in our solar system, then this is the place to look.
And if you want to know why NASA worries about people of faith in the event of an alien invasion, you can always consult our previous article on the subject.
