By Alex H. Elias A. Nina M. Avery S.

 Jupiter is the fifth planet in the solar system.  Jupiter is also the closes Jovian planet to the sun.  Jupiter is a gas planet so thus life would not exist on the planet.  Thankfully, it has moons! Hooray!

 With 63 total moons, Jupiter has many natural satellites.  These moons are of many different sizes, but most are under 3 km. wide.  There are four large and very prominent moons.  These moons are Io, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto. They were all discovered by Galileo in 1610.

 Io is a very hot place at 1800 Kelvin. It has a lot of volcanic activity, the most in the solar system.  With volcanic eruptions daily (400 active volcanoes), along with massive lava flows.  Io orbits very close to the outer atmosphere of Jupiter.  Io also has a high concentration of sulfur in its atmosphere.

 Europa is covered with ice but, underneath is a sea!  Europa orbits in an oval around Jupiter, this means that there are tides beneath the ice caused by Europa’s unique elliptical orbit.  It is slightly smaller than Earth’s moon and it always has the same side facing Jupiter.  It’s atmosphere is filled with oxygen!  It has a surface temperature of -260 degrees Faherenheit

 Ganymede is the largest satellite in the entire solar system!!!  The moon is approximately half silicate rock, and water ice.  A salt water ocean is believed to exist 200 km. below the surface.  Ganymede is the only satellite in the solar system believed to have a magnetic field because of its supposed hot iron core (oh wow)!

 Callisto is the third largest moon in the solar system! Can you believe it?!? I sure can.  Similar to Ganymede, Callisto is supposed to be composed of half ice, and half rock.  The surface is heavily cratered and very old.  This moon, unlike others is not rumored to have any undersurface activity.  This moon is a big cold rock. Period.

 A planet must possess relatively clean liquid water, there has to be organic molecules that can transform into life, and energy sources to maintain metabolism.  The planet must be at the ideal distance from its sun, in order to sustain a temperature that is suitable for life.  The sun must be consistently giving off heat and light so that life can form under similar circumstances and evolve over time

 We know that there is a lot of volcanic activity on Io which is how the Earth was in the beginning.  Based on that, there could be certain elements that will be in the lava that will come into the atmosphere and could make life sustainable.  Since Io looks like a primitive Earth the possibilities for life are just now forming.

 Yes! Europa could potentially sustain life.  Not only is it covered in ice (water), but there is a hidden sea underneath all those layers.  The planet is cold, but it’s heat source is Jupter; pulling the tides of its sea.  Oxygen is a necessity, and Europa’s got it!  There has been discovery of bacteria in Earth’s harshest conditions, that are much like Europa’s.

 Possibly… but not likely.  Ganymede’s source of water is extremely salty. No life form we know of can survive solely upon this. But you never know.  Although the temperatures are very low, and atmosphere is little to none; Ganymede has a strong magnetic field. This could protect life from damaging radiation.

 Not likely..  This moon is one hundred percent desolate. Unlike Europa and Ganymede who prove that there is more than meets the eye, Callisto proves otherwise..  It is a big cold rock.  But not all hope is lost! Ice covers much of the moon. Ice = water.  The atmosphere is also decently sustainable.

 With these moons the orbit Jupiter, it really opens the possibility for other life in our solar system.  The circumstances these moons are under currently hold the most likely conditions for life.  If the conditions evolve or just shift slightly, the probability for life would be almost 100%!!!!