Jupiter’s moon Europa may have less oxygen than expected, a discovery that could put a damper on life

A new study suggests that the icy surface of Jupiter’s moon Europa has less oxygen than thought, which could have implications if the moon’s underground ocean harbors life. be.

Even with little or no oxygen, microbes can still thrive in the ocean, which is thought to exist several miles (kilometers) below Europe’s frozen crust. As for what else, “nobody knows,” said Kevin Hand, a NASA scientist who was not involved in the study published Monday. natural astronomy.

Further research is needed to confirm these findings, Hand said, but they contrast with previous telescopic observations of condensed oxygen in Europa’s ice, which show higher oxygen concentrations.

The new study is based on data collected by NASA’s Juno spacecraft during a particularly close flight to Europa in 2022. The distance is only 219 miles (353 kilometers).

The American and European teams calculated that 13 to 39 pounds (6 to 18 kilograms) of oxygen is produced every second on Europa’s surface.

Previous estimates were that as much as 2,245 pounds (1,100 kilograms) of oxygen could be produced per second and over a wider area. Therefore, the new measurements provide a “narrower range of support for habitability,” the researchers wrote, “unless Europa’s oxygen production was significantly higher in the past.”

This oxygen is formed along with hydrogen when Jupiter’s radiation blasts away Europa’s global frozen water shell.

Lead author James Zareh of Princeton University said Juno’s flyby was the first time a spacecraft had “directly sniffed” Europa’s surroundings. “We couldn’t wait to peek behind the curtain of that complex environment,” he said in an email.

“It’s a much narrower scope than previously thought, but there’s still a lot we can learn,” Zarai said.

It’s unclear how much oxygen escapes into the Moon’s atmosphere, how much remains in the ice, and how much flows into the subsurface ocean.

NASA plans to launch Europa Clipper this fall. The spacecraft will make dozens of close-bys to Europa, which is roughly the size of the moon, as it orbits the gas giant.