Europa the frozen jewel of Jupiter
Enceladus the active geyser of Saturn
The recipe for alien life
Hunting for life in space
YOUR GOAL
Master of Oceans of Europa and Enceladus
artiteacher Hunting for life in space
Ice-covered moons, / oceans below, / ready for life!
artiteacher International treaties dictate how cleanly we must explore other worlds.
artiteacher Space agencies must sterilize spacecraft to avoid accidentally colonizing other worlds with Earth microbes.
artiteacher Steer your probe through icy plumes to discover if Europa and Enceladus could support life.
Spacecraft cleaning: Spacecraft are assembled in cleanrooms cleaner than surgical operating rooms to prevent carrying Earth microbes.
Any substance or phenomenon that provides scientific evidence of past or present life. In 2005, NASA's Cassini spacecraft detected potential organic biosignatures in plumes erupting from Enceladus.
What did the Cassini spacecraft do at the end of its mission in 2017 to protect Saturn's moons from contamination?
What type of robot is being designed to melt through the thick ice shells of ocean moons?
What is the name of the planetary protection category assigned to missions targeting high-priority ocean moons?
How would a sub-ice cryobot send its gathered ocean data back up to the surface lander?
What extreme sterilization method is often used on spacecraft components to kill stubborn Earth bacteria?
Which international committee sets the guidelines for preventing planetary contamination during space missions?
What is the term for accidentally introducing Earth microbes to another planet or moon?