What evidence is there for liquid water on Europa?
Mounting Evidence for Water The measurements suggested to scientists that electrically conductive fluid, likely a salty ocean beneath Europa’s ice layer, was causing the magnetic disturbances. When researchers analyzed the magnetic disturbances more closely in 2018, they found evidence of possible plumes.
Why is there liquid water on Europa?
It is far far out from the sun and yet it’s got this liquid water ocean, and the reason that Europa has liquid water is because it’s orbiting Jupiter and the tidal tug and pull causes Europa to flex up and down and all that tidal energy turns into mechanical energy, which turns into friction and heat that helps …
Can liquid water exist on Europa?
Europa. Scientists’ consensus is that a layer of liquid water exists beneath Europa’s (moon of Jupiter) surface, and that heat from tidal flexing allows the subsurface ocean to remain liquid.
What is the evidence for some liquid water pockets under the surface of Europa and why is this interesting to scientists searching for extraterrestrial life?
A liquid-water ocean hides under the frozen surface of Saturn’s moon Enceladus, new evidence confirms. The presence of this water boosts Enceladus’ ranking among the top places in the solar system to look for extraterrestrial life, scientists say.
Is Neptune a gas giant or ice giant?
The cold and remote giant planets Uranus and Neptune are nicknamed the “ice giants” because their interiors are compositionally different from Jupiter and Saturn, which are richer in hydrogen and helium, and are known as the “gas giants.” The ice giants are also much smaller than their gaseous cousins, being …
Is Neptune just gas?
A gas giant is a large planet composed mostly of gases, such as hydrogen and helium, with a relatively small rocky core. The gas giants of our solar system are Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune.
Is Neptune the smallest gas giant?
Neptune is the fourth largest planet in terms of diameter, making it the smallest in physical size of the gas giants. The average diameter across the planet is 30,598 miles (49,244 km), almost four times the diameter of Earth.