The mysterious red streaks that criss-cross the surface of Jupiter’s moon, Europa, may be the result of a newly discovered type of salty ice, the network suggests. CNN.
Europa has long intrigued scientists because the moon has a subsurface ocean, under a thick crust of ice.
Plumes of fluid are known to erupt from cracks in the icy crust, shooting the contents of the moon’s strange ocean into space.
Scientists tell the network that ocean worlds like Europa are the best bet for finding evidence of extraterrestrial life, according to scientists.
According to the network, Europa’s surface red streaks, which are believed to be a frozen mixture of liquids and salts, are unusual because they “do not match any known material on Earth.”
Scientists determined in 2019 that the yellow parts of Europa’s surface were caused by the presence of sodium chloride – commonly known as table salt. Underneath the surface of the moon’s outer crust lies the “ocean” on Europa, under a thick crust of ice.
It is believed that the “hydrates”, a mixture of liquids and salts, form into a solid ice network at very low temperatures and under high pressure.
A study by scientists who spoke to the network indicates that Jupiter’s moon Europa may have a habitable ice crust.
