Hubble discovers water vapor venting from Jupiter’s moon Europa
Thursday, December 12, 2013 - 11:30
in Astronomy & Space
The Hubble Space Telescope has discovered water vapor erupting from the frigid surface of Jupiter's moon Europa, in one or more localized plumes near its south pole. Europa is already thought to harbor a liquid ocean beneath its icy crust, making the moon one of the main targets in the search for habitable worlds away from Earth. This new finding is the first observational evidence of water vapor being ejected off the moon's surface.