PASADENA — Scientists at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory announced on Friday that data from the Europa Clipper spacecraft has confirmed the existence of a subsurface liquid ocean beneath Jupiter's moon Europa, with depth measurements of approximately 20 kilometres and a salt chemistry that researchers say is consistent with conditions where microbial life could theoretically persist.
The findings, published simultaneously in three papers in the journal Nature Astronomy, represent the most detailed characterisation of Europa's ocean since the Galileo mission first suggested its existence in the late 1990s.
What the Data Shows
The Clipper's ice-penetrating radar identified distinct reflective layers at depths of between 15 and 25 kilometres beneath the moon's icy shell. Magnetic field measurements suggest the ocean is saline and in contact with a rocky seafloor — a configuration that, on Earth, supports rich chemosynthetic ecosystems around hydrothermal vents.
"We are not saying there is life on Europa," said principal investigator Dr Carla Mendes. "We are saying the conditions are not incompatible with life as we understand it. That is a meaningful statement about a world 630 million kilometres away."
Next Steps
NASA's Europa Lander mission, currently in Phase A development, aims to send a spacecraft to drill through the ice shell and retrieve ocean water samples by 2041. The estimated mission cost is $5.8 billion.