Life in the Universe (4th Edition)
4th Edition
ISBN: 9780134089089
Author: Jeffrey O. Bennett, Seth Shostak
Publisher: PEARSON
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Textbook Question
Chapter 9, Problem 17TYU
While Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto are all candidate locations for life, we expect that the most abundant and diverse life would be found within Callisto.
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At present, NASA is planning a mission to Europa, to try and assess its habitability. An argument might also be made for Enceladus, however.
Let's imagine you had to pick one of those moons to send an uncrewed (i.e. robotic) mission to. The spacecraft will probably orbit the giant planet (Jupiter in the case of Europa, Saturn in the case of Enceladus), and make many flybys of the moon you're studying.
Which moon would you pick, and why? The goal here is to briefly discuss the pros and cons of each moon as a target for a mission. You don't even have to have a strong preference either way, just lay out a few pros and cons for each.
At present, NASA is planning a mission to Europa, to try and assess its habitability. An argument might also be made for Enceladus, however.
Let's imagine you had to pick one of those moons to send an uncrewed (i.e. robotic) mission to. The spacecraft will probably orbit the giant planet (Jupiter in the case of Europa, Saturn in the case of Enceladus), and make many flybys of the moon you're studying.
Which moon would you pick, and why? The goal here is to briefly discuss the pros and cons of each moon as a target for a mission. You don't even have to have a strong preference either way, just lay out a few pros and cons for each.
Breaking this into a few short paragraphs will probably be a good idea
There is strong evidence that Europa, a satellite of Jupiter, has a liquid ocean beneath its icy surface. Many scientists think we should land a vehicle there to search for life. Before launching it, we would want to test such a lander under the gravity conditions at the surface of Europa. One way to do this is to put the lander at the end of a rotating arm in an orbiting earth satellite.
Chapter 9 Solutions
Life in the Universe (4th Edition)
Ch. 9 - Briefly explain how the larger jovian moons tend...Ch. 9 - Briefly describe the cause of the tides on Earth,...Ch. 9 - What is synchronous rotation, and why is it so...Ch. 9 - What is tidal heating? Briefly explain how it can...Ch. 9 - Describe the evidence suggesting that Europa has a...Ch. 9 - What energy sources might be available to life on...Ch. 9 - Describe the evidence for subsurface oceans on...Ch. 9 - Why was Titan chosen for such intense study by the...Ch. 9 - Based on recent data, describe the general nature...Ch. 9 - What evidence suggests that Enceladus might be...
Ch. 9 - Could Triton be habitable? Briefly discuss the...Ch. 9 - What do we mean by chemical equilibrium and...Ch. 9 - Prob. 13RQCh. 9 - Based on our understanding of the chemistry of...Ch. 9 - Io is riddled with volcanoes because of its...Ch. 9 - Europa is likely to have fishlike organisms the...Ch. 9 - While Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto are all...Ch. 9 - The fact that our Moon keeps one side always...Ch. 9 - Titan is simply too cold to have any life.Ch. 9 - Triton might have life that uses liquid ammonia,...Ch. 9 - Io doesnt have a significant atmosphere because it...Ch. 9 - Orbital resonances like those among Io, Europa,...Ch. 9 - If there is life on Enceladus, it probably gets...Ch. 9 - If our solar system is typical, other star systems...Ch. 9 - The moons of Saturn may have large amounts of...Ch. 9 - Which statement about synchronous rotation is...Ch. 9 - Io is covered in volcanoes while Europa is covered...Ch. 9 - Which of the following is not an indication of...Ch. 9 - Photosynthesis is an unlikely source of energy for...Ch. 9 - Its assumed that, even if Europa has life, the...Ch. 9 - The chances for life on Titans surface are...Ch. 9 - Where might we find liquid water on Titan? (a) in...Ch. 9 - Why were scientists so surprised to find active...Ch. 9 - Chemical disequilibrium is likely to be present in...Ch. 9 - Cost-Effective Exploration. Given its budget, NASA...Ch. 9 - Lessons for Life. Considering everything weve...Ch. 9 - Exploring Europa I. Although Europa is a promising...Ch. 9 - Exploring Europa II. One suggestion for...Ch. 9 - Europan Fish. On Earth, fish breathe oxygen that...Ch. 9 - Life on Titan. Several possibilities have been...Ch. 9 - Migrating Life. As we discussed in Chapter 6,...Ch. 9 - Orbital Resonances I. Using the data in Appendix...Ch. 9 - Orbital Resonances II. Using the data in Appendix...Ch. 9 - Tidal Force on the Moon. In Cosmic Calculations...Ch. 9 - Tidal Force on Io. Using the procedure from Cosmic...Ch. 9 - Tidal Force on Europa and Ganymede. Using the...Ch. 9 - Limited Thinking. Throughout this book, we have...Ch. 9 - Europa Orbiter. Find out the current status of...
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- Given that no sunlight can penetrate Europa’s ice shell, what would be the type of energy that could make some form of europan life possible?arrow_forwardCompare Titan to Rhea. Estimate the strength of surface gravity on Titan compared to the gravity on Titan. How does this affect the possibility of an atmosphere on each? Use g=GM/R2 Titan Radius: 2,575 km, Mass: 2.31 x 1021 kg Rhea Radius: 764 km, Mass: 1.35 x 1023 kgarrow_forwardMission to Titan: Titan is the largest of Saturn’s moons and the only moon in the Solar System that possesses a dense atmosphere and large liquid bodies (seas or lakes) at its surface. For these and other reasons, many exobiologists think that Titan is the most likely place in the Solar System beside Earth where life might exist. NASA is considering sending a 600 kg space probe into orbit around Titan in order to map its surface. This would be followed a few years later by a 320 kg robotic lander that would land on the surface of Titan in order to look for life. a) What would be the space probe’s velocity and orbital period if the probe were to orbit at an altitude of 70 km above the surface of Titan? b) What force would the lander’s thrusters need to produce in order to allow the lander to hover just above the surface of Titan.arrow_forward
- What are the arguments for and against life existing inside the moon Europa?arrow_forwardWe think the terrestrial planets formed around solid “seeds” that later grew over time through the accretion of rocks and metals. a) Suppose the Earth grew to its present size in 1 million years through the accretion of particles averaging 100 grams each. On average, how many particles did the Earth capture per second, given that the mass of the Earth is = 5.972 × 10 ^24 kg ? b) If you stood on Earth during its formation and watched a region covering 100 m^2, how many impacts would you expect to see in one hour. Use the impact rate you calculated in part a. You’ll need the following as well: the radius of the Earth is = 6.371 × 10 ^6 m and the surface area of the Earth is 4??^2Eartharrow_forwardHow probable is it that other solar systems will have habitable planets, given what you know about the solar nebula theory? Take a look at NASA's Kepler mission and write a half-page summary of it.arrow_forward
- a) What are the characteristics of a terrestrial planet? b) What are the characteristics of aJovian planet?arrow_forwardAssuming all other variables were earth based besides atmospheric pressure, calculate the temperature at which water would boil at sea level on Titan versus Earth? And explain why using molecular concepts. Consider the pressure of Earth’s atmosphere at sea level to be 1 atm and the pressure of Titan’s atmosphere at sea level to be 1.45 atm. ps plz stop refusing my questions or im going to cancel this membershiparrow_forwardImagine a trans-Neptunian object with roughly the same mass as Earth but located 50 AU from the sun. a) based on the solar nebula theory, what do you think this object would be made of and why? b) on the basis of speculation, assume a reasonable density for this object and calculate its diameter in units of Earth radii.arrow_forward
- Describe the Doppler Method of searching for exoplanets.arrow_forwardWhat is the evidence for a liquid water ocean on Europa, and why is this interesting to scientists searching for extraterrestrial life?arrow_forwardPresent theory suggests that giant planets cannot form without condensation of water ice, which becomes vapor at the high temperatures close to a star. So how can we explain the presence of jovian-sized exoplanets closer to their star than Mercury is to our Sun?arrow_forward
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