NASA's Million Dollar Project: Searching for life on Europa

NASA intends to spend $ 25 million to discover the satellite Europa - which has an ocean and is believed to contain life beyond Earth.

Let's explore satellite Europa through the following series:

Europa is one of Jupiter's four largest moons that NASA has been paying attention to for decades.This satellite is covered with a thick frost.

Europa differs from other moons, including the Earth's Moon, which does not have a pore surface.

Surface comparison: On the left is Europa, on the right is the Earth's Moon

The surface of Europa satellite entangled cracks like broken glass.

Perhaps therefore Europa does not rotate around Jupiter completely.

When it approached Jupiter, it stretched into a streamlined shape. When it is far from Jupiter, it shrinks into a sphere.

Scientists believe that the surface of Europa is distorted 30 meters every 85 hours, by the time it turns around Jupiter's orbit.Europa is stretched so the crust cracks.

Scientists are most interested in the lower surface of Europa.Stretching raises the heat in the core of Europa to form ocean waves below the icy crust.

The surface of Europa has no air, the temperature never exceeds -260 degrees Fahrenheit.

The icy shell helps keep the ocean water Europa out of space and keeps the ocean in a liquid state. Where there is water is where there is life.

The arrow indicates the ocean water layer of Europa.

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There is some evidence that oceans exist.There are places where the surface is covered with material like drift ice.

Icebergs in the Arctic Ocean form the same terrain on Earth.

On the surface of Europa also has bumps.Scientists believe that the mound is formed by frozen lakes and dissolves in the icy crust.

Europa's magnetic field shows many proofs of the vast ocean that exists.Scientists believe that the magnetic field is produced by tidal forces below the surface.

It seems that Europa satellite is hiding the ocean world.Scientists are wondering if the ocean is like Earth.

Jupiter's other moon spews nutrients across Europa's surface and dives into the sub-surface water.So the ocean of Europa has the necessary substances for life.

Scientists are looking to find marine life like on Earth.

So NASA is eager to explore Europa.

Doing this task is not easy because the satellite Europa is located between Jupiter's powerful radiation belts, so any spacecraft up here needs a thick shield.

A few years later will go to Europa, then take flight expeditions. But NASA has yet to give a detailed design of the lander.