During the next few days, a probe will be launched into space on a mission that will last 8 years, in search of signs of life in other worlds of our solar system, specifically in the moons orbiting Jupiter.
The British newspaper “The Guardian” said that the spacecraft will not go to celestial bodies near Earth, such as Mars, and will instead fly into space to survey the icy moons surrounding Jupiter.
With this mission, humanity opens a new chapter in the search for extraterrestrial life.
The probe bears the name “Jupiter’s Icy Moon Explorer”, and seeks to reveal an unknown feature in our solar system.
Details of the probe launch process
- The probe will launch on April 13th.
- It originates from French Guiana in South America.
- The cost of the project is $1.4 billion.
This is the first space mission that seeks to explore icy moons that are relatively distant worlds, especially within our galaxy.
The largest reserves of water are found on worlds far from Earth, in deep space, and in the orbits of Jupiter and Saturn.
“We’d like to see if there are places around Jupiter where life might begin,” said Oliver Whitsey, the expedition’s scientist.
“We need to find a place that has internal energy and liquid water,” he added.
He pointed out that “the icy moons around Jupiter give us good reasons to believe that there is more water than what is on the surface of the Earth.”
The idea that scientists’ best hopes for finding extraterrestrial life depended on exploring ice-covered moons in space seemed absurd decades ago.
But the most prominent hopes that scientists had were attached to the planets Venus and Mars, and soon they discovered through a space mission that the surface temperature of Venus is 475 degrees Celsius, which is enough heat to melt lead.
Scientists discovered that Mars lost its atmosphere and surface water billions of years ago, and efforts to discover water supplies under its surface have not succeeded so far.
Meanwhile, US probes discovered that three of Jupiter’s most prominent moons are worlds of ice that cover oceans of liquid water, the only necessary condition for the existence of life.
The satellites are:
- Ganymede
- Callisto
- Europe
Commenting on the issue of icy moons, American astronomer Neil Tyson says: “If there is any other place to search for life, it is here.”
