The latest finding by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope found continuous water vapor in Jupiter's ice moon Europa. These water vapors had the appearance of 60-mile-high geysers.
However, scientists are perplexed as to why this phenomenon occurs exclusively on one side of Jupiter's moon.
NASA Solar System said Jupiter has up to 79 moons. Around 26 of them are awaiting formal names. Researchers are particularly interested in the first four moons identified, notably Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto, out of the 53 named moons.
The ice surface of Europa, in particular, is thought to conceal a huge ocean. Depending on the circumstances, the moon may provide suitable conditions for life. For the time being, NASA experts are studying the moon to lay the basis for future space missions.
NASA Hubble Spots Water Vapor in Europa, Jupiter's Icy Moon
A researcher at the KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, Lorenz Roth, said NASA Hubble Space Telescope detected the water vapor in the Jovian moon's southern hemisphere. The water vapor is only on the side that trails the gas giant throughout its orbit.
Scientists had anticipated this uneven distribution of water vapor using computer simulations. The space agency was surprised as to why they saw this phenomenon for the first time.
Roth published his study, titled "A Stable H2O Atmosphere on Europa's Trailing Hemisphere From HST Images," in Geophysical Research Letters by Roth. The discovery comes after discovering water vapor in the atmosphere of Ganymede, one of Jupiter's four moons.
Water Vapor Moving to Another Area
In a video, NASA has noticed that the water vapor has expanded into a broader area. Furthermore, it is an unusual observation of Europa, which indicates a novel behavior of its moon, with water vapor spread out across a larger area.
This discovery has surprised NASA, especially because it reveals that water vapor is concentrated in one location or hemisphere and not dispersed over the globe.
To find the water vapor, Roth looked at Hubble Space Telescope data from 1999, 2012, 2014, and 2015. The data was gathered with the help of the Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (STIS).
Astronomers can use STIS to determine which chemical elements make up a planet's or moon's atmosphere. The Hubble Space Telescope's sensor has also been used to identify oxygen in Europa's atmosphere.
A Temporary Phenomenon
Water vapor has previously been found in Europa's atmosphere. But astronomers linked it to plumes that violently explode through the ice crust of the Jovian moon. Water vapor is sent as high as 62 miles into the Europan atmosphere as a result of this.
Researchers, per Newsweek, dubbed this water vapor "transient" since it only lasted a few seconds and was restricted to a few places around Europa.
The presence of water vapor in Europa's trailing atmosphere appears to be permanent, implying that it is there at all times. It's also prevalent over a considerably larger region than previously thought.
Europa and Jupiter's other icy moons will be explored by the ESA's Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (JUICE) mission in the near future. JUICE is scheduled to launch in 2022 and reach Jupiter's system in 2031.
The probe will be equipped with the most advanced sensor technology deployed beyond Mars and the inner planets. In addition to JUICE, NASA's Europa Clipper will explore Europa with the goal of looking for evidence of life on the moon.
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