Made Jupiter's moons to colonize? What can humans do?

Continuing with our "The Definitive Guide to Terraforming a Planet," the universe today is happy to show us the moons of terraformed Jupiter. Like forming the inner solar system, it might one day be feasible. But should we expect it?

Fans of Arthur C. Clarke may remember that in his novel 2010: The Odyssey 2 (or the film adaptation 2010: The Year We Contacted) , how an alien species turned Jupiter into a nova. In doing so, Jupiter's moon Europa was permanently formed, and as its icy surface melted, an atmosphere formed, and all life that lived in Europa's oceans began to emerge and grow on the surface. thrive on.

As we explained in a previous article ("Can Jupiter Become a Star"), turning Jupiter into a star is not entirely feasible (not yet, anyway). However, there are several proposals about how we might go about modifying some of Jupiter's moons to make them habitable for humans. In short, it is possible that humans could one day shape more of Jupiter's moons into fully habitable Earths.

Jupiter's moons:

There are 79 confirmed moons in the Jupiter system, varying in size, shape and composition. They are sometimes collectively referred to as Jupiter's stars in honor of Jupiter. Of these, the four largest - Io, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto - are known as the Galileans (in honor of their founder Galileo Galilei). These four moons are the largest in the solar system, with Ganymede being the largest, even larger than Mercury.

In addition, three of these moons—Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto—are either thought to or known to have core mantles There is an internal ocean near the boundary. The presence of warm water oceans is considered not only a sign of potential life on these moons, but also a reason for possible human habitation.

In the Galilean star system, Io, Europa and Ganymede all oscillate with each other in their orbits. Io has an average orbital oscillation of 2:1 with Europa, and a 4:1 orbital oscillation with Ganymede, which means that for every Jupiter orbit it completes, Europa completes two one orbit, Ganymede completes a quarter of its orbit. This vibration helps keep these moons' orbits eccentric, which in turn triggers tides to bend their interiors.

Naturally, each moon has its own advantages and disadvantages in terms of exploration, settlement, and formation. Ultimately, these all come down to the specific moon structure and composition, its proximity to Jupiter, the availability of water, and whether the moon in question is dominated by Jupiter's powerful magnetic field.

Possible methods:

The process of converting Jupiter's Galilean moons is really simple. Basically, it's all about using local resources and the Moon's interaction with Jupiter's magnetic fields to create a breathable atmosphere. The process would begin by heating the surface to sublimate the ice, a process that could involve orbiting mirrors focusing sunlight onto the surface, nuclear detonators, or crashing comets/meteors into the surface.

Once surface ice begins to melt, it forms dense clouds of water vapor and gaseous volatiles (such as carbon dioxide, methane, and ammonia). This in turn creates a greenhouse effect, heating the surface even more and triggering a process known as radiolysis (the dissociation of molecules through exposure to nuclear radiation).

Basically, water vapor exposed to Jovian radiation produces hydrogen and oxygen, with the former escaping into space and the latter staying closer to the surface. This process already occurs around Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto, and is responsible for forming their fragile atmospheres (which contain oxygen).

Since ammonia is primarily composed of nitrogen, it can be converted into nitrogen gas (N2) by the introduction of certain strains of bacteria. These include Nitromonas, Pseudomonas and Clostridium, which convert ammonia into nitrite (NO2-) and then nitrite into nitrogen. Because nitrogen acts as a buffer gas, a nitrogen-oxygen atmosphere can be created with enough air pressure to sustain human survival.

Another option falls under the heading of "metamorphosis" - the process by which a world is enclosed (wholly or partially) in an artificial shell in order to transform its environment. In the case of the Jovians, this would involve building large "shell worlds" to surround them, holding the atmosphere in place long enough to effect long-term changes.

In this enclosure, the temperature of Europa, Ganymede and Callisto could slowly increase, and the water vapor atmosphere could be exposed to UV radiation from internal UV lamps, which could then introduce bacteria and Add other elements as needed. Such an enclosure would ensure that the process of creating the atmosphere could be carefully controlled and nothing would be lost until the entire process was complete.

Io:

The average radius is 1821.6±0.5 kilometers, and the average distance (semi-major axis) from Jupiter is 421,700 kilometers. Moon is the innermost Galilean star. Because of this, Io is completely surrounded by Jupiter's powerful magnetic field, which is why the surface is exposed to large amounts of harmful radiation. In fact, Io receives approximately 3600 rem (36Sv) of ionizing radiation per day, while organisms on Earth experience an average of 24 rem per year!

The moon has the shortest orbital period of any Galilean star, taking about 42.5 hours to complete an orbit around the gas giant. The Moon's 2:1 and 4:1 orbital vibrations with Europa and Ganymede (see below) also contribute to its orbital eccentricity of 0.0041, which is the main cause of Io's geological activity.

With an average density of 3.528±0.006g/cm3, Io has the highest density of any moon in the solar system, and is much higher than the other Galilean moons. Composed primarily of silicate rock and iron, its volume composition is closer to that of an Earth-like planet than other moons in the outer solar system, which are mostly composed of water ice and silicates.

Unlike its moon Io, Io does not have a warm ocean beneath its surface. In fact, based on magnetic measurements and heat flow observations, a magma ocean is believed to exist about 50 kilometers below the surface, itself about 50 kilometers thick and accounting for 10% of the mantle. Magma ocean temperatures are expected to reach 1473K (1200°C/2192°F)..

The main source of internal heat is tidal flexure, which is the difference between Io and Europa. The result of vibrations in Ganymede's orbit. Due to this differential tidal pull, friction or dissipation in Io's interior produced significant tidal heating in Io's interior, melting large amounts of Io's mantle and core.

This heat is also responsible for Io's volcanic activity and its observed heat flows, which periodically cause lava to erupt up to 500 kilometers (300 miles) into space. All the while, its surface is covered with smooth plains, dotted with tall mountains, craters of all shapes and sizes, and volcanic lava flows. It is colorful in appearance (combinations of orange, yellow, green, white/grey, etc.). It also suggests that volcanic activity has coated the surface with sulfuric acid and silicate compounds and caused surface renewal.

Io has almost no water, although small amounts of water ice or hydrated minerals have been tentatively identified, most notably on the northwest flank of Gisbalmons. In fact, Io has the smallest amount of water of any known object in the solar system, most likely due to Jupiter being hot enough early in the solar system's evolution to drive volatile materials like water out of its surface.

Taken together, all of this adds up, and Io is a complete impossibility when it comes to Earth formation or settlement.

This planet is too hostile, too dry, and too active to ever become something habitable!

Reference materials

1. Wikipedia Encyclopedia

2. Astronomical terms

translate: Kamikawa Kazuki

author: universetoday

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