Alien Oceans: NASA's Europa Clipper Mission

NASA is launching a spacecraft to Jupiter's ocean moon Europa in October 2024 to learn more about its potential habitability. Scientists describe Europa as an "ocean world" because decades of evidence from analysis of spacecraft observations strongly suggest that an ocean of liquid water is hidden beneath the moon's icy surface. The search for life beyond Earth is one of NASA's primary objectives. If humans are to truly understand our place in the Universe, we must learn whether our planet is the only place where life exists. Life needs a source of energy, the presence of certain chemical compounds, and temperatures that allow liquid water to exist. Jupiter's ocean moon Europa seems to be just such a place! Join us to learn more about Europa and why NASA wants to go there.

Speaker: Dr Kevin Hand, Jet Propulsion Labs