Europa Clipper Archives - Page 3 of 13 - Astrobiology

Global distribution of the four major nonwater species in Europa’s surface ice with reaction rate coefficients scaled down by a factor of 10. (a) H2SO4. (b) SO2. (c) H2O2. (d) O2. -- astro-ph.EP

Astrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Europa, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Jupiter, Status Report

Global Distribution Of The Key Species on the Surface of Europa

by Keith CowingNovember 13, 2025November 13, 2025

The icy surface of Europa is continuously bombarded by ions and electrons from Jupiter’s magnetosphere.

Simulation of 3I/ATLAS’s ion tail on 1 November 2025 assuming a 460 kms−1 radial flow. Positions of Europa Clipper, Sun, Hera, and 3I/ATLAS are shown in a frame where the Sun-Europa Clipper line is fixed. The plane represents that of the ecliptic, with grid lines spaced at 0.1 au. The comet’s position is shown every 6 hours, with legs showing its position north of the ecliptic. Europa Clipper is also north of the ecliptic by 0.069 au. Earth and Mars’s mean orbital distances are included for scale. -- astro-ph.EP

Astrochemistry, Astrogeology, Astronomy & Telescopes, Comets and Asteroids, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report

Prospects For The Crossing Of Comet 3I/ATLAS’s Ion Tail

by Keith CowingOctober 21, 2025October 21, 2025

During October – November 2025, interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS, will pass upstream of the Europa Clipper and Hera spacecraft.

Conceptual model of Europa as a global system, showing interacting regions and processes including ocean circulation, oxidant delivery from the surface, cryovolcanism, and tectonic features such as lineae, plains, craters, and ridges. Adapted from Vance et al. (2023), Space Science Reviews, 219, 81. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11214-023-01025-2. -- eartharxiv.org

Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Habitable Zones, Status Report

Exomorphic Catalysis: A Discipline Dedicated to Energetic Disequilibria and the Activation of Life-Potential in Non-Terrestrial Environments

by Keith CowingOctober 3, 2025October 3, 2025

The search for life beyond Earth has long been guided by two dominant paradigms: astrobiology, which seeks environments capable of supporting life as we know it, and planetary engineering, which […]

Jupiter's moon Europa is smaller than Earth's moon yet may contain more than twice as much liquid water as all of Earth's oceans combined. Scientists believe that under its icy surface, Europa features a global saltwater ocean, perhaps 40 to 100 miles (60 to 150 kilometers) deep. Further inward, a rocky mantle and metallic core are likely. -- NASA larger image

Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Europa, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

New Constraint On Europa’s Ice Shell: Magnetic Signature From The Ocean

by Keith CowingSeptember 16, 2025September 16, 2025

Jupiter’s icy moons are believed to host subsurface liquid oceans, and among them, Europa stands out as one of the most promising candidates for extraterrestrial life.

Juice flyby of Venus -- ESA

Europa, Missions & Hardware, Press Release, Venus

Astrobiology Droid Update: Juice Team Resolves Anomaly On Approach To Venus

by Keith CowingAugust 26, 2025

The European Space Agency’s Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (Juice) is on track for its gravity-assist flyby at Venus on 31 August, following the successful resolution of a spacecraft communication anomaly […]

Analysis of exospheric ice grains at Europa by SUDA.

Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Cryobiology, Europa, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Jupiter, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Missions & Hardware, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, Sample Return, Status Report, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Replicating The Flyby Sampling Of Salty Ocean World Ice Grains Using Impact Ionization Mass Spectrometry

by Keith CowingAugust 15, 2025August 15, 2025

The Europa Clipper mission will arrive at the Jovian system in 2030 and analyze ice grains sourced from the icy material on its surface using impact mass spectrometry, which will […]

Europa Clipper’s radar instrument received echoes of its very-high-frequency radar signals that bounced off Mars and were processed to develop this radargram. What looks like a skyline is the outline of the topography beneath the spacecraft. Credit: NASA Larger image

Astrogeology, Europa, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Mars, Missions & Hardware, Press Release

Europa Clipper Radar Instrument Proves Itself at Mars

by Keith CowingAugust 1, 2025August 1, 2025

The agency’s largest interplanetary probe tested its radar during a Mars flyby. The results include a detailed image and bode well for the mission at Jupiter’s moon Europa.

EIS datasets. Sequence of observation types during a flyby as a function of range to Europa. Although only shown once here for clarity, observations are made both inbound and outbound depending on illumination. (Not to scale) -- Space Science Reviews via PubMed

Astrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Europa, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Jupiter, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Missions & Hardware, Status Report, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

The Europa Imaging System (EIS) Investigation

by Keith CowingJuly 17, 2025June 26, 2026

The Europa Imaging System (EIS) consists of a Narrow-Angle Camera (NAC) and a Wide-Angle Camera (WAC) that are designed to work together to address high-priority science objectives regarding Europa’s geology, […]

The hydrothermal microbes Holden studies thrive in lightless, oxygen-less conditions a mile or more beneath the ocean’s surface. Credit: James Holden

Away Teams & Field Reports, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Caves, Craters, Mountains, Subsurface, Lava Tubes, Europa, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Fossils & Paleontology, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Habitable Zones, Lava / magma ocean / Volcanic Worlds, Microbiology & Virology, Missions & Hardware, Origin & Evolution of Life, Press Release, ROVs/Submersibles/Diving, Sample Return, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Answers To The Existence Of Alien Life Might Be Found In Earth’s Deep-sea Volcanoes

by Keith CowingJuly 15, 2025July 14, 2025

While popular culture commonly depicts extraterrestrial life as little green men with large, oval-shaped heads, it’s most likely that if there is life beyond our planet and within our solar […]

Left panel: simulated, noise-free spectra of water ice (dashed dark-blue curve) and selected trace species of interest. Middle panel: simulated spectra of non-water-ice species mixed with water ice, at an abundance fraction of 5%. The dashed dark-blue curve is a pure water-ice spectrum for reference. Right panel: zoom-in of the (a) 3.2–3.6 μm and (b) 3.8–5.0 μm regions of four spectra from the middle panel. While organics are spectrally rich in the 3–5 μm wavelength range, on Europa we expect them to be present in trace amounts in a background of water ice, which leads to weak absorption signatures (on the order of a few percent in strength) on top of a mostly water-ice-rich continuum. Other heavily hydrated, non-ice materials may also be plausible background components, and exploring their effects on detectability is an interesting direction for future work. The key physical parameters used in these simulations are as follows: incidence angle = emergence angle = 45◦ ; phase angle = 90◦ ; average grain size = 50 μm. Re>ectance is expressed in units of radiance factor. -- astro-ph.EP

Astrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Europa, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report

An Assessment of Organics Detection and Characterization On The Surface Of Europa With Infrared Spectroscopy

by Keith CowingJune 3, 2025June 3, 2025

Organics, if they do exist on Europa, may only be present in trace amounts on the surface. NASA’s upcoming mission Europa Clipper is going to provide global, high quality data […]