#Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Jupiter’s icy moon Europa is of particular scientific interest because its salty ocean, which lies beneath a thick layer of ice, may currently have conditions suitable for existing life and the ocean water may even make its way into the icy crust and onto the moon’s surface. New research and modeling, led by University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa planetary sciences researcher Emily Costello, estimate how far down that surface is disturbed by the process called “impact gardening.”