[ad_1]
Water vapor is formed when the moon’s icy surface changes from a solid to a gas, a process called sublimation. Astronomers detected this water vapor using a set of new and archived Hubble observations.
Previous research has indicated that Ganymede – the ninth largest object in our solar system – contains more water than all of Earth’s oceans combined, even though the Moon is 2.4 times smaller than our planet.
But Ganymede is so cold, with temperatures reaching minus 300 degrees Fahrenheit (-184 degrees Celsius), that the surface is a snowy crust of icy water. About 100 miles (161 kilometers) below this crust is likely a salty ocean – and the researchers knew there was no way the ocean could evaporate through the ice crust to create vapor. of water.
The moon is named after the bearer of the bearers of the ancient Greek gods. In addition to being the largest natural satellite in our solar system, Ganymede is also the only moon to have a magnetic field. This makes the aurora shine around the north and south poles of the moon.
The Hubble Telescope took its first ultraviolet image of Ganymede in 1998, revealing these auroral bands. At first, researchers believed these auroras were due to the atmosphere of pure oxygen, first discovered using the same telescope in 1996. But some features were inexplicable and seemed slightly different from each other.
Ganymede’s surface temperature can vary widely throughout the day. At noon at the moon’s equator, it gets hot enough for the icy surface to sublime or release small amounts of water molecules, which explains the differences seen in the ultraviolet images taken by Hubble. Although Ganymede’s icy crust is as hard as rock, the influx of charged particles from the sun is enough to erode and release water vapor.
The European Space Agency’s JUICE mission, or JUpiter ICy Moon Explorer, will launch in 2022. It will reach Jupiter in 2029 and spend three years observing the giant planet and its three largest moons. Ganymede will be included in this investigation, and researchers hope to learn more about the moon as a potential habitat for life.
“Our results can provide JUICE instrument teams with valuable information that can be used to improve their surveillance plans to improve spacecraft utilization,” said lead author of the study, Lorenz Roth, researcher at the KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm. Declaration.
Learning more about Ganymede could help researchers learn more about how gas giants like Jupiter and its moons form and evolve over time – and whether icy moons, scattered throughout our solar system, are habitable environments. where life can make its way.
“Internet enthusiasts of exasperating humility. Proud hooligans. Web lover. Business man. Award-winning musical lawyer.
Source link
