A research team from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (NASA)
was able to monitor how the moon "Europa" - the sixth closest to Jupiter
and the fourth by size - can glow in the dark, which may help a better
study of Europa In the future.
Basically, the moon Europa
consists of silicate rocks, covered by an ice crust from the outside,
and some scientists believe that there are oceans of water beneath that
crust.
To reach those results, which were published in the
journal Nature Astronomy and announced by the agency in an official
statement on November 9th, this research team designed a laboratory
simulation of the atmosphere on this moon. This experiment was called
the "ice room." And where the snow was set in a condition quite similar
to what happens on the moon Europa.
By virtue of the close
distance between it and Jupiter, where it is located inside the planet's
magnetosphere, Europa is exposed to intense bursts of radiation
periodically, and according to the study, this radiation causes the
excitation of the atoms that make up the ice and its contents of salts
such as sodium chloride and magnesium sulfide, which causes glare Faint
night, with a color close to green, with a luster similar to the
reflection of the moon's rays on the sand on a dark night.
According
to the research team, the main purpose of the study was to examine the
nature of radiation; But they were surprised by additional, unthinkable
results.
The team found that changing the ratios of chemicals
inside the snow causes a change in radiation levels, which provides an
excellent way to monitor the moon remotely, so that the nature of the
glow can provide scientists with an opportunity to identify the moon's
chemical components.
Searching for life:
This comes in the
context of preparations that are now in full swing to launch two
promising missions to study Europa, the first belonging to the US
Aerospace and Space Agency, which is called the "Europa Clipper"
mission, and the second belongs to the European Space Agency (ESA), and
the mission is called " JUICE, both of which are expected to launch
before the end of this decade.
The moon Europa is one of the
most important areas in the solar system, which astrobiologists are
interested in, as they search for traces of minute life in it, as long
as water - in any form - was possible for life to exist.
In this context, the results of the new study come, and have great significance for these researchers, as this new mechanism can help them identify the presence of organic materials on the surface of the moon, which may indicate the existence of life.
Source: Nasa
