Detecting blue water?

therocketjohn · Dec 16, 2008

Have astronomers detected blue looking water on another planet? If so, I wonder where, when, and how? Also, what observable variables contribute in deciding if another planet has water?

Saiph · Dec 17, 2008

I'm not sure why you specify 'blue' water.  Do you mean liquid water? <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> --------------------SaiphMOD@gmail.com -------------------"This is my Timey Wimey Detector. Goes "bing" when there's stuff. It also fries eggs at 30 paces, wether you want it to or not actually. I've learned to stay away from hens: It's not pretty when they blow" -- The Tenth Doctor, "Blink" </div>

therocketjohn · Dec 26, 2008

Ok I'll rephrase the question. Have astonomers detected liquid water on the surface of another planet and if so, what makes astronomers believe that it is actually water?

Saiph · Dec 29, 2008

I'm not entirely sure if we have detected liquid water on the surface of another planet.  Gaseous yes, ice, yes.  Europa has strong indications of liquid water being beneath the ice crust.But the method of detection would be spectrographic.  Water, like any atomic or molecular compound, has a specific way it interacts with light.  By looking for that pattern, that fingerprint, we'd be able to determine it's presence. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> --------------------SaiphMOD@gmail.com -------------------"This is my Timey Wimey Detector. Goes "bing" when there's stuff. It also fries eggs at 30 paces, wether you want it to or not actually. I've learned to stay away from hens: It's not pretty when they blow" -- The Tenth Doctor, "Blink" </div>

therocketjohn · Dec 30, 2008

Replying to: <DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>I'm not entirely sure if we have detected liquid water on the surface of another planet.  Gaseous yes, ice, yes.  Europa has strong indications of liquid water being beneath the ice crust.But the method of detection would be spectrographic.  Water, like any atomic or molecular compound, has a specific way it interacts with light.  By looking for that pattern, that fingerprint, we'd be able to determine it's presence. Posted by Saiph</DIV>Thanks for your response. For Europa, did they just see that wavelengths were equal to the wavelegths of ice or steam as we know them on earth, then conclude that Europa must have water? Are there other things with similiar  wavelengths that it could be or do ice, water, and steam have specific wave lengths not found in other chemical makeups that we have tested?  Also, I wonder how accurate we know our wavelength detection is from 600 billion kilometers or more?

Saiph · Jan 1, 2009

Wavelength detection is quite good over distance, assuming there's enough light.  Afterall, we use it on galaxies billions of light years away.As for Europa, most of it is the photographic evidence of 'tectonic' plates in giant ice crusts on the surface, and their apparently young ages.  Someone else would have to speak up on that, I don't follow the planetary sciences that closely <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> --------------------SaiphMOD@gmail.com -------------------"This is my Timey Wimey Detector. Goes "bing" when there's stuff. It also fries eggs at 30 paces, wether you want it to or not actually. I've learned to stay away from hens: It's not pretty when they blow" -- The Tenth Doctor, "Blink" </div>

3488 · Jan 2, 2009

Replying to: <DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>Wavelength detection is quite good over distance, assuming there's enough light.  Afterall, we use it on galaxies billions of light years away.As for Europa, most of it is the photographic evidence of 'tectonic' plates in giant ice crusts on the surface, and their apparently young ages.  Someone else would have to speak up on that, I don't follow the planetary sciences that closely Posted by Saiph</DIV>Hi Saiph,It's not often I get to elaborate on a Glabal Moderator's post.Yes you are correct. The surface of Europa is ice. There is some circumstantial evidence of sub surface liquid H2O, though it is not proven fact.A lot of hype suggests its a done deal. It is not. There is some evidence to support a subsurface ocean for sure, but it could also be convecting 'warm ice' below a more brittle colder harder ice crust (1 Ceres may also show evidence for this, but will have to wait for DAWN's arrival). I suspect that there IS some liquid H2O in places below Europa's ice crust.There are likely to be volcanoes on the 'ocean' floor, as Europa is being kept warm by the same forces that power the violent eruptions on Europa's slightly larger & considerably more massive inner neighbour Io, but with Europa the flexing is only about 15% of Io's. One area I suspect that there is subsurface liquid H2O is Conamara Chaos. <img src="http://sitelife.space.com/ver1.0/Content/images/store/8/2/f8e1f428-d840-4b03-b286-09649f7b2225.Medium.jpg" alt="" />  <img src="http://sitelife.space.com/ver1.0/Content/images/store/12/0/2c16c5bc-a13f-4788-b0a9-91d70d95550d.Medium.jpg" alt="" /> <img src="http://sitelife.space.com/ver1.0/Content/images/store/13/4/8d6fcb56-6925-41b5-8462-b97c444dcbe3.Medium.jpg" alt="" />Ice blisters, diapirs??  <img src="http://sitelife.space.com/ver1.0/Content/images/store/2/14/12742f22-ccc9-4e6c-8e73-7dc4b4c24338.Medium.jpg" alt="" /> However the below point to regions with a much thicker crust. <img src="http://sitelife.space.com/ver1.0/Content/images/store/9/4/69234810-064a-443e-842c-28e4f6ca236a.Medium.jpg" alt="" /> Map showing Europa's ice fractures / tectonic failting. <img src="http://sitelife.space.com/ver1.0/Content/images/store/1/10/b1b7bf73-ee45-4993-ba34-fa2ffd76e16c.Medium.jpg" alt="" />Also the Saturn moon Enceladus is suspected of having liquid water below the south polar region, feeding the geysers. Once again, this is not proven fact. The Tiger Stripe region DOES to me look like paint hardening in a paint pot, but that is only my own opinion, not based on official scientific fact.Enceladus very thin south polar crescent, with Saturnshine on the Northern Hemisphere. The geysers show well backlit. <img src="http://sitelife.space.com/ver1.0/Content/images/store/10/6/3a5dc156-1e56-48d2-b65e-3ff73e946492.Medium.jpg" alt="" />Enceladus Tiger Stripes. <img src="http://sitelife.space.com/ver1.0/Content/images/store/13/15/1d5a0aac-a936-4eb3-bf02-4dfb4784d5c5.Medium.jpg" alt="" /> Enceladus. Extreme close up with ice boulders. Cairo Sulcus with cliff. <img src="http://sitelife.space.com/ver1.0/Content/images/store/5/0/65145d39-aeab-4a92-907f-8823e006e6b0.Medium.jpg" alt="" /> Enceladus. Small section of Cairo Sulcus. <img src="http://sitelife.space.com/ver1.0/Content/images/store/1/3/11c764d4-a8f8-47e8-a339-2c4fd500067b.Medium.jpg" alt="" /> Also Neptune's moon Triton, appears to have had liquid H2O at some point, possibly during global melting during the capture of the Pluto & Eris like KBO by Neptune. Does Triton still hold a liquid H2O ocean deep underground?<img src="http://sitelife.space.com/ver1.0/Content/images/store/10/10/7a5df095-078f-408e-aaff-39f62d072185.Medium.jpg" alt="" />Frozen lake on Triton. <img src="http://sitelife.space.com/ver1.0/Content/images/store/9/15/5964a249-1479-4a77-9fa5-be4fa7c1c7b5.Medium.jpg" alt="" />Triton, Cantaloupe Terrain with Europa & Enceladus type faulting. <img src="http://sitelife.space.com/ver1.0/Content/images/store/7/13/67a260cf-4a1c-4207-8dc6-155ffebd9195.Medium.jpg" alt="" />Triton, dark patches. <img src="http://sitelife.space.com/ver1.0/Content/images/store/6/13/e626eb60-a37c-45e7-8d5a-aa37837ffe6a.Medium.jpg" alt="" /> Other bodies like the giant Jupiter moons Ganymede & Callisto, Saturn's Titan, Uranus's Titania & many KBOs may too have deep reserviors of liquid H2O. Andrew Brown.  <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> "I suddenly noticed an anomaly to the left of Io, just off the rim of that world. It was extremely large with respect to the overall size of Io and crescent shaped. It seemed unbelievable that something that big had not been visible before". Linda Morabito on discovering that the Jupiter moon Io was volcanically active. Friday 9th March 1979.http://www.launchphotography.com/ http://anthmartian.googlepages.com/thisislandearthhttp://web.me.com/meridianijournal </div>

Search

Detecting blue water?

therocketjohn

Guest

Saiph

Guest

therocketjohn

Guest

Saiph

Guest

therocketjohn

Guest

Saiph

Guest

3488

Guest

Similar threads

TRENDING THREADS

Latest posts

Share this page