Abstract
Recent images of Europa lend new credence to the possibility of a subsurface ocean on the Jovian moon. This image, collected by Galileo on February 20 when the craft flew within 580 km of Europa, shows chunky ice rafts on the surface. The crustal plates, some as large as 13 km across, seem to have been broken apart and rafted into new positions in much the same manner as pack‐ice on Earth's polar seas. The area depicted is 34 km by 42 km, shown at a resolution of 54 meters per pixel.Ronald Greeley, a geologist from the Arizona State University and member of the Galileo imaging team, believes the ice rafts at the surface suggest that the crust is thin and covers either liquid water or slush. “We're intrigued by these blocks of ice,” said Greeley, “ which are similar to those seen on Earth's polar seas during springtime thaws.”
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