Extremophiles, Exoplanets,

and the Possibility of Life on

Europa
Presented to you by Claire, Colby, Ellen, and Sam

Extremophiles
Extremophiles are any life form, microbial or otherwise, that are
able to live and thrive in physically or geochemically dangerous
conditions that would be impossible for other creatures to exist
in.
Recently, as documented in Astronomy magazine, extremophile
life in the form of microbes has been documented to live half a
mile below the icy surface layers of Antarctica.

What They Found

Researchers have found what could be described as the first hints
of a massive microbial ecosystem buried beneath the ice in a
range as large as 5 million square miles.
Samples collected from Lake Whillans, which resides beneath a
glacier, and found that the organisms there are not just surviving,
but thriving.
These life forms pull their energy from rocks, and take carbon
from CO2.

What This Means for Life in the Universe

Both Jupiters moon Europa and Saturns moon share
a similar environment with that in which the
recently discovered Antarctic life thrives.
This suggests that the same microbial life they
found deep under the ice could survive (if not
thrive) in the oceans of other planets or moons.
The tidal effects of Jupiter especially support the
possibility of life on its moon Europa, because it
causes a heating effect of around 250 degrees
kelvin.

The Environment on Europa

The surface of Europa is frozen, with temperatures between 50
and 100 kelvin (or between -369 and -279 degrees Fahrenheit. This
environment is not conducive to life, and is too cold for most life
as we know it to develop.
However, in 2013, it was discovered that plumes of liquid water
erupt from the ice at various locations throughout this ice
covering, suggesting a liquid ocean underneath the icy surface.
This ocean is under constant pressure due to the gravitational
effects of Jupiter.

Origins and Maintenance of these Oceans

Europa has an iron center with an internal temperature
maintained by the radioactivity of the rock at its core.
This outputs an equivalent of 100 nuclear plants worth of
energy into the ocean, keeping it heated at 250 degrees
kelvin (or -9 degrees Fahrenheit)
Because of its elliptical orbit, this water does not freeze,
thanks to the additional heat generated by the tidal
effects of Jupiter, which adds an additional terawatt of
energy into the mix, raising the net internal temperature
to the levels needed for liquid water.

Oxygen in the Ocean

At first glance, it would seem that only the simplest of organisms
could survive in such an environment due to the lack of oxygen,
however, the intense radiation from trapped charged particles in
Jupiters atmosphere that bombards Europa generates a plethora
of oxidants.
These oxidants, mixed into the Europas oceans, create an
environment very conducive to a more diverse biosphere.

Terrestrial Life on Europa

There are species on Earth that could likely survive the
conditions on Europa, including:
Desulforuds Audaxviator (bold traveler) survives more
than a mile beneath the Earths surface in complete
isolation, without sunlight, oxygen, or organic
compounds. They survive by feeding off of chemical food
sources in the surrounding rocks, much like the recently
discovered life under Antarctica.
Tube Worms can live around underwater vents, living off
the microbial life that feeds off of these vents output.

Exploring the Dark Oceans

In 2022, the European Space Agency hopes to launch a probe
referred to as JUICE (JUpiter ICy moon Explorer) that would serve
as a flyby mission through the Jovian moons.
NASA has a concept for the Europa Clipper, which is currently
slated for a 2025 launch that would sample the southern water
plume of Europa and flyby the moon, gathering data and snapping
pictures.
Actually entering one of the dark oceans is currently only a hope
for the future, as we test technology with the necessary
capabilities in similar environments here on Earth.

Dark Oceans Throughout the Cosmos

If dark oceans exist in our solar system, they could easily exist
throughout the galaxy, in all manner of moons or planets outside
our solar system.
Our galaxy, as we have discovered, has all manner of strange
systems and planets throughout it, and Dark Oceans would be no
stranger than any other.

Exoplanet Systems
The first planet in another solar system was
discovered twenty years ago circling the Pulsar PSR
1719-14. The orbit of this planet is the shortest
known, at only 2.2 hours per revolution.

Three years later, another planet was discovered

orbiting the sun-like star Kepler-90. Since then, we
have discovered seven total planets orbiting this star.
All in all, we have found upwards of 1800 exoplanets
in our part of the Milky Way, and we have found
several stars that harbor five or more stars.

Diverse and Numerous Worlds

Worlds have been discovered that have an orbital period of two
hours, and worlds have been discovered with an orbital period of
two thousand years.
We have even discovered Earth-sized worlds that lie in their stars
habitable zones, where temperatures are just right for liquid
surface water.
In addition to the 1800 planets we have confirmed discovered, we
have another 4000 that have been observed and are awaiting
confirmation.

Habitable Planets
With the number of planets in the galaxy, it is absurd to think
Earth is the only habitable world. After all, we havent even
observed but a tiny fraction of nearby worlds, and theres a whole
universe out there to pick and choose from.
One of the planets around Gliese 876, Gliese 876b, spends its
entire orbit inside the habitable zone around a red dwarf, and
could very easily support life.
Gliese 667C has three planets inside its habitable zone, two of
which are Super Earths. Any of these could be conducive to life.

The Possibilities of Life Beyond Earth

are endless. Intelligent life is not something we have observed
anywhere off of earth, but that does not mean it does not exist. And
even more common are microbial life forms, which can exist in
almost any environment, and sentient, but not sapient life.
Our capabilities to find and study this life may be limited by the
scope of our technology for now, but as we continue to advance,
there is nothing suggesting that we wont find life on worlds outside
our own solar system, or even beyond our own galaxy. Perhaps
even beyond our own universe?