NASA's Galileo orbiter has suggested that Jupiter's moon Europa may contain water reserves. Scientists predict that Europa may contain more water than Earth.
Scientists have found salty liquid reservoirs on Europa, some of which are only a few kilometres below the ice's surface and others of which are much deeper. These conclusions follow the Juno spacecraft's buzzing of the lunar planet at a height of around 400 kilometres, during which it captured the most detailed photographs ever of the Jovian moon.
Now scientists are trying to figure out more about the subsurface lakes and how they behave on Jupiter's moon. The research states that shallow reservoirs in Europa's icy crust represent the most accessible water bodies in the solar system.
Based on computer simulations, the research suggests that water could erupt above the surface of Europa; it could either produce plumes of vapour or experience cryovolcanic activity, and eruptions could possibly occur from places like shallow, wide lakes embedded in the ice.
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