Ocean-Surface Exchange at the Icy Ocean Worlds:

Combining Insights from Experimental and Field Analogue Approaches

Ice-covered moons in the outer solar system contain vast oceans of liquid water, where ongoing water-rock interactions may provide the necessary conditions to support microbial life. While the oceans are locked under kilometers of solid ice, processes such as cryovolcanism can deliver ocean materials to the surface, where they are accessible by spacecraft. The presentation will cover recent experimental insights into ocean/surface interactions at Saturn’s moon Enceladus and the implications for how microbial biomass could be entrained in cryovolcanic plumes and delivered to space. In addition, this presentation will discuss results from fieldwork at unique brine springs in the Canadian High Arctic, which form large-scale deposits of salts analogous to those remotely detected on Europa’s surface. Investigating natural (bio)geochemistry in these springs provides insights into how such processes may be archived on the surface of Europa and other ocean worlds. The integration of experimental, modeling, and analogue approaches is key to interpreting spacecraft observations, paving the way for upcoming missions such as NASA’s Europa Clipper and ESA’s JUpiter ICy moons Explorer (JUICE).

Видео Ocean-Surface Exchange at the Icy Ocean Worlds: канала Lunar and Planetary Institute