Galileo and Europa?

Hi Group,

Sorry if this has been posted before. I understand we are redirecting
Galileo. Exactly what is it that will "contaminate" Europa if Galileo
crashes into it? Do we know for sure that there is liquid water on Europa?

Thanks

In message , Todd
writes
Hi Group,

Sorry if this has been posted before. I understand we are redirecting
Galileo. Exactly what is it that will "contaminate" Europa if Galileo
crashes into it? Do we know for sure that there is liquid water on Europa?

Galileo wasn't sterilised before launch because no-one believed there
could be life in the Jupiter system. There's a small chance that some
bacteria may have survived, they are capable of living in the cooling
water of nuclear reactors so even Jupiter's radiation might not destroy
al of them.
It seems fairly certain there's liquid water under the ice on Io, but
no-one's sure how far down.
So it seems worth while ensuring the complete destruction of Galileo now
its mission is complete and while there is still some control. It would
be nice to arrange for its ejection from the system so the dead craft
could remain as a memorial, but that can't be done.
--
"Forty millions of miles it was from us, more than forty millions of miles of
void"

In message , Todd
writes
Hi Group,

Sorry if this has been posted before. I understand we are redirecting
Galileo. Exactly what is it that will "contaminate" Europa if Galileo
crashes into it? Do we know for sure that there is liquid water on Europa?

Galileo wasn't sterilised before launch because no-one believed there
could be life in the Jupiter system. There's a small chance that some
bacteria may have survived, they are capable of living in the cooling
water of nuclear reactors so even Jupiter's radiation might not destroy
al of them.
It seems fairly certain there's liquid water under the ice on Io, but
no-one's sure how far down.
So it seems worth while ensuring the complete destruction of Galileo now
its mission is complete and while there is still some control. It would
be nice to arrange for its ejection from the system so the dead craft
could remain as a memorial, but that can't be done.
--
"Forty millions of miles it was from us, more than forty millions of miles of
void"

Todd wrote:
Hi Group,

Sorry if this has been posted before. I understand we are redirecting
Galileo. Exactly what is it that will "contaminate" Europa if Galileo
crashes into it? Do we know for sure that there is liquid water on Europa?

Thanks



Here's another link with some information:

http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap030919.html

Todd wrote:
Hi Group,

Sorry if this has been posted before. I understand we are redirecting
Galileo. Exactly what is it that will "contaminate" Europa if Galileo
crashes into it? Do we know for sure that there is liquid water on Europa?

Thanks



Here's another link with some information:

http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap030919.html