The JunoCam imager aboard NASA's Juno spacecraft captured this image of Jupiter's moon Europa in 2022.
Europa, one of Jupiter's moons and a target for an upcoming NASA mission, is producing more oxygen than previously estimated, according to a new study.
The research, published in Nature Astronomy, suggests Europa's icy surface releases about 1,000 tons of oxygen every day - enough to sustain a million people's breathing needs for 24 hours.
Scientists with NASA's Juno mission, currently orbiting Jupiter, made the discovery using data from the spacecraft's JADE instrument. They analyzed data collected during a close flyby of Europa in September 2022.
Previous estimates for Europa's oxygen production ranged widely, from a few pounds to over 2,000 pounds per second. The new JADE measurements indicate a more consistent rate of 26 pounds per second.
The presence of oxygen on Europa is intriguing because scientists believe the moon harbors a vast ocean beneath its icy crust. This subsurface ocean is considered a potential habitat for life, and the existence of oxygen could be a key factor in supporting such life.
The study suggests two possible sources for Europa's oxygen: from the moon's own water ice being broken down by radiation, and from charged particles from Jupiter bombarding the surface and splitting water molecules.
This new information adds to the excitement surrounding NASA's upcoming Europa Clipper mission, which is scheduled for launch later this year. The mission aims to explore Europa in more detail and investigate its potential for harboring life.
"Europa is like an ice ball slowly losing its water in a flowing stream. Except, in this case, the stream is a fluid of ionized particles swept around Jupiter by its extraordinary magnetic field," said JADE scientist Jamey Szalay from Princeton University in New Jersey. "When these ionized particles impact Europa, they break up the water-ice molecule by molecule on the surface to produce hydrogen and oxygen. In a way, the entire ice shell is being continuously eroded by waves of charged particles washing up upon it."