. This celestial satellite produces sufficient oxygen every day to sustain a million human beings’ respiration.
NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory reported on Monday that Europa, which is one of the 95 moons of Jupiter, produces 1,000 tons of oxygen per day.
7.8 billion peoplen
According to researchers, the current amount of oxygen is sufficient to support the daily breathing needs of a million humans. However, it is significantly lower than the previous estimates made by scientists. This amount of oxygen could potentially affect the 7.8 billion people on Earth.
The subterranean sea on the moon.
It is believed to have double the amount of water as all of the oceans on Earth combined.
Europa, the sixth-nearest satellite to Jupiter, has a size that is slightly smaller than that of Earth’s moon, as reported by NASA. Similar to Earth, Europa is thought to possess a rocky mantle and an iron core.
According to a recent study published in the journal Nature Astronomy, Europa is generating about 26 pounds of oxygen per second. Previous predictions by scientists suggested that the moon could be producing over 2,000 pounds of oxygen per second.
the Galileo probe
The most recent calculation was derived from the quantity of hydrogen being emitted from Europa’s surface. The information was collected by the Galileo probe. successfully entered orbit around Jupiter on July 4, 2016.
On July 4, 2016, NASA’s Juno space probe successfully achieved orbit around Jupiter.
In 2022, it passed Europa during its flight.
Lead author James Szalay from Princeton University stated that Juno has introduced a groundbreaking capability to directly assess the composition of charged particles released from Europa’s atmosphere. We were eager to gain a deeper understanding of this fascinating water world. However, we were pleasantly surprised to find that Juno’s findings provided us with a precise estimate of the quantity of oxygen generated on Europa’s frozen surface.
Even with oxygen, this planet may not be safe for humans, and not solely due to the absence of breathable air.
NASA/JPL-Caltech
“The issue of exploring Europa by humans is quite intricate,” stated Szalay via email. “The level of radiation on Europa is extremely high, and it is estimated that an astronaut wearing a spacesuit would not be able to endure more than one day on the surface solely because of this intense radiation. Therefore, they would likely face more significant challenges than just the availability of oxygen in such an environment.”
Since its launch in 2011, NASA’s Juno has been conducting research on Jupiter since 2016.
NASA’s Juno mission states that accurately determining the water and oxygen levels in the gas giant is crucial for comprehending both the planet’s formation and the transfer of heavy elements within the solar system. These elements played a key role in the development of rocky planets, such as Earth, and ultimately the presence of life.
The mission stated that studying Jupiter, the prime example of a gas giant, can provide insight into the numerous giant planets found orbiting other stars.
NASA’s proposed mission, called Europa Clipper, is scheduled to take place on October 10, 2024. Its purpose is to thoroughly explore Jupiter’s moon, Europa, in order to determine if there is potential for it to sustain life.
According to the space agency, Europa is potentially the most favorable location in our solar system to discover current conditions that could support some type of life beyond our planet.
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Source: cbsnews.com