Europa Subsurface Ocean |
Europa Subsurface Ocean |
Nov 22 2005, 10:53 AM
Post
#1
|
|
Senior Member Group: Members Posts: 3648 Joined: 1-October 05 From: Croatia Member No.: 523 |
Regarding the very real possibility Europa harbors an ocean underneath the ice, I'm wondering whether there have been any estimates on how long such an ocean might have been sustained (I'm assuming it's still there today). Are we talking about the entire history of Europa, billions of years or a much more recent thing, only a few millions? I know Enceladus, which recently turned out to be much warmer inside than expected, could have been periodically heated, but not on very long timescales.
I'm primarily interested because of the habitability factor, obviously an ocean which freezes out every once and a while would not make for a good incubator to possible life. Also, supposedly all tidal heating on Europa would cease now, how long would it take for the subsurface to freeze out, that is, what are the thermal conductive properties of the surface ice? Admittedly, I haven't done much research on the subject and if the question was already asked before, I apologize. -------------------- |
|
|
Nov 22 2005, 02:47 PM
Post
#2
|
|
Member Group: Members Posts: 903 Joined: 30-January 05 Member No.: 162 |
I don't imagine I'm an expert on this, but wouldn't Europa freeze from the top down, and warm (from tidal effects) from the bottom up?
This would keep the 'interesting' part of Europa, the bottom of the water layer, the last to freeze and the first to thaw. If the heating and cooling periods (if there is variation) aren't too intermittent, we shouldn't freeze the 'potential life zone'. IIRC, microbes have been found deep under the sea floor on earth, so perhaps potential Europan life forms have a much larger volume of Europa to live in than we think. |
|
|
Nov 22 2005, 03:35 PM
Post
#3
|
|
Senior Member Group: Members Posts: 3648 Joined: 1-October 05 From: Croatia Member No.: 523 |
QUOTE (tasp @ Nov 22 2005, 04:47 PM) I don't imagine I'm an expert on this, but wouldn't Europa freeze from the top down, and warm (from tidal effects) from the bottom up? This would keep the 'interesting' part of Europa, the bottom of the water layer, the last to freeze and the first to thaw. That's precisely the reason I asked about the thermal properties of the upper ice layer - that's the only way for heat from the interior to escape into space, if the ice is very non-conductive, it could serve as a blanket preserving the warm water beneath. QUOTE If the heating and cooling periods (if there is variation) aren't too intermittent, we shouldn't freeze the 'potential life zone'. If you don't freeze out, but you do cut out any heating, the organisms wouldn't have any thermal hotspots/vents on the ocean bottom to acquire energy/food from. So, simply keeping the ocean in a liquid state probably doesn't help all that much, but I'm really no expert on biology. -------------------- |
|
|
Lo-Fi Version | Time is now: 26th September 2024 - 04:37 PM |
RULES AND GUIDELINES Please read the Forum Rules and Guidelines before posting. IMAGE COPYRIGHT |
OPINIONS AND MODERATION Opinions expressed on UnmannedSpaceflight.com are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of UnmannedSpaceflight.com or The Planetary Society. The all-volunteer UnmannedSpaceflight.com moderation team is wholly independent of The Planetary Society. The Planetary Society has no influence over decisions made by the UnmannedSpaceflight.com moderators. |
SUPPORT THE FORUM Unmannedspaceflight.com is funded by the Planetary Society. Please consider supporting our work and many other projects by donating to the Society or becoming a member. |