Best Havens for Life: Europa, Io, and Mars , page 1
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Topic started on 13-5-2008 @ 04:12 PM by Trash can
I've watched countless videos and read countless articles about Mars, Io, nad Europa. Each of these (especially Europa) can be havens for life.

MARS I don't believe that Mars has life on it now and I'm pretty sure no one does but it could have been something like Earth. Perhaps it had life and suffered a global warming or humungo meteor type-deal that made it a barren rock. Canals and gorges found on Mars however probably formed by water or mud and if not, what else?
ere

IO Io is a moon of Jupiter. It is the most volcanically active body in our solar system. One of its volcanoes is hotter and bigger than all the volcanoes on Earth combined. Do you think life could thrive here? (IO isn't really important so we will skip to the big one)

EUROPA This moon of Jupiter is our best bet for life somewhere other than Earth. Europa is an icy moon with a scratched ice surface. But beneath this cold shell is a warm oasis of water, an ocean. Water is the basic element for life so I don't see why even the most adaptable lifeforms couldn't live here.

If I were head of NASA or whatever I would can the moon and Mars and head straight for Europa. But that's me, wanting to actually do something important rather that orbit a barren white rock called Luna.


reply posted on 13-5-2008 @ 08:15 PM by Badge01
Some scientists believe that active plate tectonics are important, even essential for renewal of a planet's biosphere.

Currently it appears Mars does not have active plate tectonics, though it may have had a similar system to Earth's at one time.

Most think that the dry cold and arid state we see today was caused by radiation. If Mars has a magnetosphere it's probably weak. At one time it may have had a molten core, say for the first billion years, but it's now probably solid, due to cooling of this smaller planet.

Now most scientists tend to believe that the samples they've seen are not biologically active, but they're not so sure they'd not put them in quarantine were they to bring any samples back to Earth.

The question is, then, could we revive Mars, warm it up, regenerate an atmosphere which would reduce radiation and support some kind of biological life, bacteria, leading to the growth of primitive plants.

Some relevant links:
Tectonics:
en.wikipedia.org...

Chris McKay Lecture (1999):
chapters.marssociety.org...

MARS: MAGNETIC FIELD AND MAGNETOSPHERE by Luhmann&Russell:
www-ssc.igpp.ucla.edu...

It would take time, 100 years minimum but with more advanced methods it might take less.

Europa
Are we certain the liquid ocean is H2O? Many people think so based on magnetic field measurements. There are various theories as to why it's warm enough to remain liquid under the relatively thick crust, but we're still not sure, AFAIK, that it's a shallow ocean or a deep one.

ISTM, that if there's a liquid ocean it may be other than H2O, and could be something like a liquid hydrocarbon.

2 cents.


reply posted on 14-5-2008 @ 07:55 AM by Enceladus
reply to post by Soylent Green Is People


You are right SoylentGIP, Enceladus is a good candidate too; Titan is more like Earth and I thought the OP would find it easy to get more details about Titan than Enceladus, if he goes for a quick search.

Regarding Enceladus, you can find these two earlier threads with some information.

Cassini Tastes Organic Material at Saturn's Geyser Moon Enceladus

Warm 'Tiger Stripes' on Geyser Moon Raise Hopes for Life


reply posted on 14-5-2008 @ 11:04 AM by Badge01
reply to post by yeti101


Interesting. Can you gift us with a link to NASA being done with Mars.

I think it's probably a reasonable decision, but unfortunate in the long run. Perhaps they've deemed the problems of manned exploration insurmountable?

If they are going to focus on probes to the outer planets, is the purpose to find micro-organisms somewhere in the solar system? Let's say they did. Now the probability of life elsewhere is proved. Then what?

Just curious.


reply posted on 16-5-2008 @ 08:56 AM by Soylent Green Is People
reply to post by Trash can

Europa is a good candidate -- but I like Saturn's moon Enceladus a bit more.

Like Europa, Enceladus is believed to have a liquid water ocean under it's surface -- and (like yeti101 said above) its geyser is shooting material into space that may have come from that interior...and that material contains the "Building Blocks of Life", organic molecules.

Europa is known to have organic molcules of it's surface. However at least for now there is no way of knowing for sure if the oceans contains orgainc molecules.

The Cassini spacecraft flew through these geyers in March and analyzed the material ejecting from Enceladus. Cassini will make an even closer approach to Enceladus in August and will once again fly through the geysers.

Europa is certainly a good candidate, but I personally think Enceladus is very exciting. And let's not forget Mars -- in 9 days (May 25) the Phoenix Lander will touch down at the edge of Mars' North polar cap and will begin to dig and analyze the soil/water ice mixture that should exist there. That should be fun to follow.

Info on Cassini and Enceladus:
spacespin.org...

Info on Mars Phoenix:
www.nasa.gov...
and
phoenix.lpl.arizona.edu...

[edit on 5/16/2008 by Soylent Green Is People]



reply posted on 2-6-2008 @ 11:22 AM by Soylent Green Is People
reply to post by Trash can


Gliese 581c has been known about for over a year now (that article you linked is from April 2007.)

It is very possible that some sort of life has formed there, since it lies within the habitable zone of its star (Gliese581), and spectral analysis suggests that water is present -- maybe a lot of water.

Some people have describe Gliese 581c as "Earth-like", but it's a big stretch to say that since astronomers don't know that much about it yet. Plus its gravity is 5X that of Earth's, so it wouldn't seem very Earth-like to a human being crushed by his own body weight due to the high gravity.
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