Jupiter's Moon Io Could Play Host To Life - Hackaday

New data collected by NASA’s Juno spacecraft suggests that despite this rugged, unhospitable exterior, Io could still host living things.

The lava is kept hot and flowing thanks to the tidal forces experienced by Io, thanks to Jupiter itself and nearby moons Europa and Ganymede.

It’s possible that the small moon may have once held water, like Europa or Ganymede, as ice was once common in its part of the solar system.

It’s believed that geothermal heat on the moon, combined with sulfur compounds, could serve as an energy source for simple microbial life.

In fact, lava tubes commonly play host to microbes on Earth, all around the globe, so it’s conceivable that the same thing could happen on a distant rock far away in the solar system.

Given the temperature profile on Io, liquid H 2 S could form in areas beneath the surface, particularly if subsurface channels were warmed by lava flows.