133

James Webb telescope finds potential signature of life on Jupiter's icy moon Europa (www.livescience.com)

submitted 1 year ago by GreyShuck@feddit.uk to c/space@lemmy.world

14 comments fedilink hide all child comments

NASA's James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has revealed homemade carbon dioxide on Jupiter's icy moon Europa, raising the possibility that the frigid waterworld could host life.

The new detection by JWST is intriguing because the carbon dioxide does not seem to have been carried by a meteorite or asteroid, and it appears in a geologically young region of the moon called Tara Regio, suggesting the gas may have formed within the moon itself.

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments

[-] Opafi@feddit.de 13 points 1 year ago

Do you have any idea just how absolutely groundbreaking primitive bacteria on other celestial bodies would be?

[-] t_jpeg@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Even more groundbreaking if their cell structure and genetic material structure is similar to the bacteria on Earth.

[-] Spzi@lemm.ee 7 points 1 year ago

Or even if it is comletely different. A second sample of how life can look like would be groundbreaking.

[-] t_jpeg@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago

You right. I was more thinking a seeding hypothesis (life on other planets coming from a single source)

this post was submitted on 22 Sep 2023

133 points (96.5% liked)

Space

8669 readers

6 users here now

Share & discuss informative content on: Astrophysics, Cosmology, Space Exploration, Planetary Science and Astrobiology.

Rules

Be respectful and inclusive.
No harassment, hate speech, or trolling.
Engage in constructive discussions.
Share relevant content.
Follow guidelines and moderators' instructions.
Use appropriate language and tone.
Report violations.
Foster a continuous learning environment.

Picture of the Day

The Busy Center of the Lagoon Nebula

Related Communities

🔭 Science

🚀 Engineering

🌌 Art and Photography