Post #5091

Jupiter ocean moon Europa likely lacks tectonic activity, reducing its chances for life Europa might not be the best place to look for alien life in the solar system after all. A new study modeling what the floor of the Jupiter moon's hidden ocean is like concluded that tectonic activity — and the complex chemical reactions that such activity facilitates — is probably negligible. "Ultimately, without fracturing and faulting, it's not clear to us how fresh rock would be exposed to the ocean to allow for the kinds of continued chemical reactions that microbes would need to sustain themselves," study lead author Paul Byrne, associate professor of Earth, Environmental and Planetary Science at Washington University in St. Louis, told Space.com. Source:Space.com @EverythingScience