Sun will die in 5 billion years but life could survive on Jupiter's moon Europa; here's how
In approximately five billion years, as the Sun transforms into a red giant, it will engulf Earth. However, a new study suggests this event could briefly make Jupiter's moon, Europa, habitable. As the Sun's habitable zone shifts outward, Europa's icy surface may melt, potentially creating a temporary atmosphere and liquid water, offering a short window for life.
A study published on May 21, 2025, by Elijah Mullens and colleagues, titled 'Life after death: Europa in the evolving Habitable Zone of a Red Sun,' explores how the Sun's future red giant phase will shift its habitable zone outward. This will include Jupiter's orbit, potentially allowing for surface water on Europa.
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In about 5 billion years, our Sun will run out of hydrogen fuel and expand into a red giant. This massive change will destroy the inner planets, including Earth, as the Sun swells beyond their orbits. But while Earth is consumed, another world in our solar system may briefly come to life: Jupiter's icy moon, Europa A new study published on May 21, 2025, titled 'Life after death: Europa in the evolving Habitable Zone of a Red Sun' by Elijah Mullens and colleagues, explores this intriguing possibility.According to the study, as the Sun enters its red giant phase, its habitable zone, the region around it where conditions are suitable for liquid water, will shift outward. This future habitable zone will include Jupiter's orbit, bringing Europa into a temperature range that may support surface water.Europa is an icy, frozen world with a vast subsurface ocean locked beneath a thick ice crust. The study suggests that as solar radiation increases, some of Europa's ice will sublimate or transform directly from solid to gas. This would create a temporary, thin water-vapor atmosphere.This newly formed atmosphere on Europa is predicted to last for about 200 million years. During this time, Europa may experience surface conditions warm enough to maintain liquid water at or near the surface, possibly for the first time in its history. Though brief in astronomical terms, that period could offer the right conditions for microbial life to emerge or, if it already exists beneath the surface, to flourish.This theory adds a fascinating dimension to the search for extraterrestrial life. Scientists have long suspected that Europa's subsurface ocean could support life like hydrothermal vent ecosystems on Earth. The red giant phase of the Sun could give Europa's ocean more direct exposure to heat and energy, improving chances for biological activity.The study provides a new way to think about planetary habitability, in terms of current and future conditions, when we look beyond planets in search of our habitable zone. Moons and planets considered uninhabitable today may temporarily become suitable for life under changing stellar conditions. It also expands the "habitable zone" concept from static to dynamic, moving outward over time as stars evolve.The findings support ongoing interest in Europa, a top target for future space missions. NASA 's upcoming Europa Clipper mission , launched in October 2024, aims to study Jupiter's moon's ice shell, subsurface ocean, and potential for life. Insights from that mission may one day help scientists understand how life could survive under Europa's ice, and whether it might adapt to a warming surface millions of years in the future.Europa's brief transformation into a life-friendly world may be a cosmic flicker, but it could offer one last chance for life in our solar system before the lights go out.
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