{"data":{"id":2099,"lang":"en","title":"Simulations Suggest Europa's Deep Ocean Water Rarely Reaches Its Icy Surface","summary":"A Rutgers-led study finds Europa's deep ocean water likely can't rise through the moon's ice shell without freezing, reshaping how scientists interpret shallow water signs near the surface.","category":"science","category_label":"Science","published_at":"2026-07-30T10:02:11Z","updated_at":"2026-07-30T10:02:11Z","url":"https://techtools.cz/tools/news/article/2099-simulations-suggest-europa-s-deep-ocean-water-rarely-reaches-its-icy-surface","api_url":"https://techtools.cz/news-api/v1/articles/2099?lang=en","markdown_url":"https://techtools.cz/news-api/v1/articles/2099.md?lang=en","image_url":"https://scx1.b-cdn.net/csz/news/800a/2026/why-europas-hidden-oce-2.jpg","word_count":178,"reading_time_minutes":1,"sources":[{"url":"https://phys.org/news/2026-07-europa-hidden-ocean-difficult-scientists.html","domain":"phys.org"},{"url":"https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/07/260727214604.htm","domain":"sciencedaily.com"}],"translation":{"lang":"cs","id":2172,"title":"Simulace naznačují, že voda z hlubokého oceánu Europy se k povrchu téměř nedostane","url":"https://techtools.cz/tools/news/clanek/2172-simulace-naznacuji-ze-voda-z-hlubokeho-oceanu-europy-se-k-povrchu-temer","api_url":"https://techtools.cz/news-api/v1/articles/2172?lang=cs"},"content":"A new study led by Rutgers University's Lujendra Ojha found that water from Jupiter moon Europa's subsurface ocean likely cannot rise through the moon's ice shell to form shallow reservoirs near the surface. Published July 24 in Nature Astronomy, the research used computer simulations to model how liquid water moves upward through cracks in Europa's kilometers-thick ice crust.\n\nThe simulations showed that water flowing through fractures loses heat rapidly to the surrounding ice, becoming supercooled and forming frazil ice that can seal the cracks within hours. That means any shallow water pockets detected near Europa's surface likely form from localized melting inside the ice shell rather than a direct connection to the deep, potentially habitable ocean below.\n\nThe distinction matters for astrobiology, since Europa's deep ocean — thought to hold twice as much water as all of Earth's oceans combined — is considered the moon's most promising environment for life. NASA's Europa Clipper, arriving in 2030, and ESA's JUICE mission, arriving in 2031, will use the findings to help interpret any ice or water signatures they detect near the surface."}}