Ganymede: The Largest Moon
What does the largest moon in the Solar System look like? Jupiter's moon Ganymede, larger than even Mercury and Pluto, has an icy surface speckled with bright young craters overlying a mixture of older, darker, more cratered terrain laced with grooves and ridges. The large circular feature on the upper right, called Galileo Regio, is an ancient region of unknown origin. Ganymede is thought to have an ocean layer that contains more water than Earth and might contain life.
Like Earth's Moon, Ganymede keeps the same face towards its central planet, in this case Jupiter. The featured image was taken about 20 years ago by NASA's Galileo probe, which ended its mission by diving into Jupiter's atmosphere in 2003. Currently, NASA's Juno spacecraft orbits Jupiter and is studying the giant planet's internal structure, among many other attributes.
Image & info via APOD
https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/astropix.html
Image Credit: NASA, JPL, Galileo Probe
#nasa #space #Ganymede #GalileoProbe #science #jupiter
I hope we see these moons in closer detail one day, a virtual flight or drive over the surface
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately the places most likely to harbor life are those we are least likely to visit. We have no way of sterilizing something as complex as a probe capable of landing on Ganymede, and so any exploration there would pose an unacceptable risk of contaminating an alien ecosystem.
ReplyDeleteI think you underestimate the extent to which scientists consider the ethics of contamination, stephen carter. Even on Mars they're avoiding the places most likely to harbor life.
ReplyDeleteBodhipaksa You're right.
ReplyDeleteWhat good is it to search for life, if in the process we wipe it out.
In reality, we've already made ourselves part of the Martian ecosystem.
ReplyDeleteExploring and keeping the formally "alien" ecosystems pristine, are mutually exclusive.
Neither Mars nor Ganymede are exempt from the vagaries of evulotion.
It's a freaking pain in the ass, stephen carter. I can't think of anything more exciting than studying alien life, and few things as tragic as wiping it out in the process. Fortunately it should be possible to sample Europa's plumes from orbit, posing a negligible risk of contamination.
ReplyDeleteBodhipaksa Gaining knowledge is an aggressive processes ......and usually painful for the subject.
ReplyDeleteThere are no solutions, only 'trade offs'.
Nasa doesn't share your POV, stephen carter, and they're the ones doing the exploring...
ReplyDeleteBodhipaksa Believe me, I sympathize with you, yet I'd like NASA to be a little more aggressive.
ReplyDeleteI'm with Stephen Hawking on this.
I think the Human species is living on borrowed time on this planet.
We need to get the hell outta here........ but quick !
It's speculated that Ganymede's vast ocean might harbor life, Michael Schuh. The very article you link to says "The moon likely has a salty ocean underneath its icy surface, making it a potential location for life."
ReplyDeleteTake a deep breath, dude. I've never claimed to be an expert. All I'm passing on is what scientists in Nasa and elsewhere believe might be possible. If you disagree with their belief that Ganymede's ocean may be capable of supporting life, take it up with them.
ReplyDeleteYes, they use clean rooms, but they've not yet found a way of producing sterile spacecraft. Nasa's Planetary Protection office has found that spacecraft produced under clean room conditions contain approximately 10,000 bacterial spores per square meter, and a significant percentage of those can survive years-long exposure to space. Therefore they take the risk of forward contamination seriously, and are very hesitant about making contact with potentially habitable environments.
Again, if you disagree with Nasa, take it up with them. I'm just passing on information.
OK guys...cut it out.
ReplyDeleteBodhipaksa has a point and that is interesting info. Thanks for sharing.
Michael Schuh is absolutely ok to ask questions, and to disagree with others but let's keep it under decent umbrella.
Merci,
I'm not going to delete your comments Michael Schuh...I'm interested to read all points of views but let's just talk in a proper manner. That is all.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the references.
Cheers,
I, on the other hand, Michael Schuh, will be blocking you. Life is too short to waste in pointless disputation.
ReplyDelete