A Change in Worldview

The Earth is not flat, nor is it the largest source of water in the solar system. According to Physorg.com, Jupiter's moon Europa has about twice the water of Earth. NASA and the Galileo Space Probe Team inferred the presence of the Europa Ocean from data collected by the probe when it studied the Jupiter system after 1995. This new information presents a profound new view of the world, a change that is as dramatic as the realization that the Earth is not flat.

Europa is covered with a surface layer of ice beneath which scientists believe is an ocean. They have drawn the conclusion based on the observation that the moon's shape shifts slightly because of the pull of Jupiter's gravity. Further, large cracks appear in the surface of the Jovian moon, suggesting that water or ice moves to the surface.

Travel time to Jupiter varies depending on the route. The Galileo probe took about six years because it flew to Venus first for a gravitational assist, a technique that allows a probe to be accelerated by using a planet's gravity. It took only thirteen months for the New Horizons spacecraft to reach Jupiter.

The discovery of the new water is profound for two reasons. Obviously, the water or water ice on the surface may someday be used for human consumption, though immediate travel to Jupiter is thought to be infeasible. NASA and ESA are planning more missions to Jupiter and Saturn to begin during the 2020's. A second reason for excitement is that larger amounts of water in the universe at least tend to increase the probability that some form of life will be found. NASA's policy in the search for life on Mars is "follow the water" because water is an essential building block for life.

Back in the late 1950s when space travel began, humanity did not know that so much water existed outside the Earth. With the discovery of abundant water, a new worldview has emerged that sends shivers down the spine. It is every bit as startling as the news in 1492 of the New World.