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Explore the 3D model of the asteroid Ceres above. What do you observe?

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Explore the 3D model of the moon Europa above. What do you observe?

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Explore the 3D model of the moon Enceladus above. What do you observe?

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Explore the 3D model of the planet Mars above. What do you observe?

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Scientists believe that water may be present on these 4 solar system objects.
Based on your observations, where do you think water is most likely to be found?
No right or wrong answer!

Ceres

Discovered: January 1, 1801 Type: Dwarf planet Location: Asteroid Belt Diameter: 587 miles (946 kilometers) Orbital Period: 1,680 Earth days Length of Day: 39.1 hours Mass: About 4 percent of the mass of Earth’s Moon

Bright surface spots observed across Ceres (high‑reflectance areas).

Dried up lake in Mojave Desert (CA) vs Ceres’ Occator Crater

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Ahuna Mons: Dome‑like mountain interpreted as a cryovolcanic (ice‑volcano) feature

Spectral imaging shows salts/evaporite‑like minerals in bright areas — consistent with briny outflows.

Interpretation Evidence for past subsurface brines (salty water) and cryovolcanism No direct sampling of liquid water Takeaway Ceres shows strong signs of past or local brine activity (salts and cryovolcanism), suggesting subsurface ice and brines.

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Europa

Discovered: 1610 Location: Moon of Jupiter Type: Icy moon Diameter: About 1,939.7 miles (3,121.6 kilometers) Orbital Period: 3,551 Earth days Length of Day: 3,551 Earth days Mass: About 65 percent of the mass of Earth’s Moon

Icy Surface Features: Smooth icy shell with linear cracks, ridges, and chaotic ("chaos") terrain visible in close‑up images.

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Compared to Earth: Surface patterns resemble deformed sea ice on Earth, implying mechanical exchange between surface ice and a subsurface layer.

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Interior Structure: Interior models and surface geology point to a layered body with a global ocean beneath the ice.

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Interpretation Structural evidence strongly supports a present subsurface ocean Has not been directly sampled Takeaway Europa is a leading candidate for a global subsurface ocean beneath an active, fractured ice shell.

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What is a significant feature on Europa's surface?

Smooth icy shell

Cratered landscape

Ocean waves

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Enceladus

Discovered: 1789 Type: Icy moon Location: Moon of Saturn Diameter: 313 miles (504 kilometers) Orbital Period: 32.9 hours Length of Day: 32.9 hours Mass: About 680 times less than the mass of Earth’s Moon

Active jets and sprays erupting from fractures near the south pole (“tiger stripes”).

Thermal maps show warm regions at the jet sources, indicating internal heat.

Spacecraft plume sampling detected water vapor, ice grains, salts, and organics in the ejected material.

Enceladus’s small orbital wobble indicates large volumes of shifting liquid—like Earth’s tides—providing evidence of a global ocean and generating enough tidal heating to keep subsurface water liqui

d.

Interpretation: direct, ongoing venting of subsurface water or slushy reservoirs — strong evidence for present liquid water activity. Takeaway: Enceladus provides direct, active evidence of subsurface water via warm vents and sampled plume material.

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What do the active jets on Enceladus indicate?

Presence of subsurface water

Solid ice surface

Only gas emissions

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Mars

Discovered: Known to ancient observers Type: Terrestial planet Location: 4th Planet from the Sun Diameter: 4,212 miles (6,779 kilometers) Orbital Period: 687 Earth days Length of Day: 24.6 hours Mass: About 7.36 times the mass of Earth’s Moon

Surface Features: Dry river valleys, outflow channels, layered sedimentary rocks, and ancient lakebeds visible in imagery.

Rain or snow likely formed Martian rivers | University of Chicago News

Minerals: Iron oxides, clays, and sulfate salts identified by spectral instruments—minerals that form in the presence of water.

Polar ice caps and mid‑latitude buried ice: water ice present today in polar caps and detected beneath the surface.

Northern Ice Cap of Mars - NASA Science

Seasonal methane detections is a debated hint of subsurface fluids.

This illustration portrays possible ways methane might be added to Mars' atmosphere (sources) and removed from the atmosphere (sinks). NASA's Curiosity Mars rover has detected fluctuations in methane concentration in the atmosphere, implying both types of activity occur on modern Mars.

Interpretation: Strong evidence for abundant past liquid water and present ice; occasional localized or transient (moving) liquid processes remain uncertain. Takeaway: Mars shows clear signs of past water activity and retains ice today, making it a key target for studying past habitability.

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What evidence suggests Mars had water in the past?

Active dust storms

Dry river valleys and ancient lakebeds

Lots of clouds and rain

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Based on the information above, where do you think water is most likely to be found?
No right or wrong answer!

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You are part of a NASA team planning a mission with the goal of finding water in the solar system besides Earth.
Where would you send the mission?
Give 2 pieces of evidence to justify your decision.

Bonus science!

Water in the Solar System and Beyond!

More information on other places the search for water may take us

4.08 Searching for Water

If you need help with this assignment, please watch the class recording

If you need help with this assignment, please watch the class recording

Bonus science!

Water in the Solar System and Beyond!

4.08 Searching for Water

If you need help with this assignment, please watch the class recording

If you need help with this assignment, please watch the class recording

Explore the 3D model of the asteroid Ceres above. What do you observe?

Explore the 3D model of the moon Europa above. What do you observe?

Explore the 3D model of the moon Enceladus above. What do you observe?

Explore the 3D model of the planet Mars above. What do you observe?

Scientists believe that water may be present on these 4 solar system objects. Based on your observations, where do you think water is most likely to be found?No right or wrong answer!

Ceres

Bright surface spots observed across Ceres (high‑reflectance areas).

Dried up lake in Mojave Desert (CA) vs Ceres’ Occator Crater

Ahuna Mons: Dome‑like mountain interpreted as a cryovolcanic (ice‑volcano) feature

Spectral imaging shows salts/evaporite‑like minerals in bright areas — consistent with briny outflows.

Europa

Icy Surface Features: Smooth icy shell with linear cracks, ridges, and chaotic ("chaos") terrain visible in close‑up images.

Compared to Earth: Surface patterns resemble deformed sea ice on Earth, implying mechanical exchange between surface ice and a subsurface layer.

Interior Structure: Interior models and surface geology point to a layered body with a global ocean beneath the ice.

What is a significant feature on Europa's surface?

Enceladus

Active jets and sprays erupting from fractures near the south pole (“tiger stripes”).

Thermal maps show warm regions at the jet sources, indicating internal heat.

Spacecraft plume sampling detected water vapor, ice grains, salts, and organics in the ejected material.

Enceladus’s small orbital wobble indicates large volumes of shifting liquid—like Earth’s tides—providing evidence of a global ocean and generating enough tidal heating to keep subsurface water liqui

d.

What do the active jets on Enceladus indicate?

Mars

Surface Features: Dry river valleys, outflow channels, layered sedimentary rocks, and ancient lakebeds visible in imagery.

Minerals: Iron oxides, clays, and sulfate salts identified by spectral instruments—minerals that form in the presence of water.

Polar ice caps and mid‑latitude buried ice: water ice present today in polar caps and detected beneath the surface.

Seasonal methane detections is a debated hint of subsurface fluids.

What evidence suggests Mars had water in the past?

Based on the information above, where do you think water is most likely to be found?No right or wrong answer!

You are part of a NASA team planning a mission with the goal of finding water in the solar system besides Earth.Where would you send the mission?Give 2 pieces of evidence to justify your decision.

Bonus science!

Water in the Solar System and Beyond!

Explore the 3D model of the asteroid Ceres above. What do you observe?

Explore the 3D model of the moon Europa above. What do you observe?

Explore the 3D model of the moon Enceladus above. What do you observe?

Explore the 3D model of the planet Mars above. What do you observe?

Scientists believe that water may be present on these 4 solar system objects. Based on your observations, where do you think water is most likely to be found?No right or wrong answer!

Ceres

Bright surface spots observed across Ceres (high‑reflectance areas).

Dried up lake in Mojave Desert (CA) vs Ceres’ Occator Crater

Ahuna Mons: Dome‑like mountain interpreted as a cryovolcanic (ice‑volcano) feature

Spectral imaging shows salts/evaporite‑like minerals in bright areas — consistent with briny outflows.

What type of geological activity suggests water on Ceres?

What kind of evidence indicates brines (salty water) on Ceres?

Europa

Icy Surface Features: Smooth icy shell with linear cracks, ridges, and chaotic ("chaos") terrain visible in close‑up images.

Compared to Earth: Surface patterns resemble deformed sea ice on Earth, implying mechanical exchange between surface ice and a subsurface layer.

Interior Structure: Interior models and surface geology point to a layered body with a global ocean beneath the ice.

What is a significant feature on Europa's surface?

What is believed to exist beneath Europa's ice?

Enceladus

Active jets and sprays erupting from fractures near the south pole (“tiger stripes”).

Thermal maps show warm regions at the jet sources, indicating internal heat.

Spacecraft plume sampling detected water vapor, ice grains, salts, and organics in the ejected material.

Enceladus’s small orbital wobble indicates large volumes of shifting liquid—like Earth’s tides—providing evidence of a global ocean and generating enough tidal heating to keep subsurface water liqui

d.

What do the active jets on Enceladus indicate?

What does Enceladus’s orbital wobble suggest?

Mars

Surface Features: Dry river valleys, outflow channels, layered sedimentary rocks, and ancient lakebeds visible in imagery.

Minerals: Iron oxides, clays, and sulfate salts identified by spectral instruments—minerals that form in the presence of water.

Polar ice caps and mid‑latitude buried ice: water ice present today in polar caps and detected beneath the surface.

Seasonal methane detections is a debated hint of subsurface fluids.

What evidence suggests Mars had water in the past?

Where are water ice deposits found on Mars?

Based on the information above, where do you think water is most likely to be found?No right or wrong answer!

You are part of a NASA team planning a mission with the goal of finding water in the solar system besides Earth.Where would you send the mission?Give 2 pieces of evidence to justify your decision.

What type of geological activity suggests water on Ceres?

What kind of evidence indicates brines (salty water) on Ceres?

What is believed to exist beneath Europa's ice?

What does Enceladus’s orbital wobble suggest?

Where are water ice deposits found on Mars?

Scientists believe that water may be present on these 4 solar system objects.
Based on your observations, where do you think water is most likely to be found?
No right or wrong answer!

Based on the information above, where do you think water is most likely to be found?
No right or wrong answer!

You are part of a NASA team planning a mission with the goal of finding water in the solar system besides Earth.
Where would you send the mission?
Give 2 pieces of evidence to justify your decision.

Scientists believe that water may be present on these 4 solar system objects.
Based on your observations, where do you think water is most likely to be found?
No right or wrong answer!

Based on the information above, where do you think water is most likely to be found?
No right or wrong answer!

You are part of a NASA team planning a mission with the goal of finding water in the solar system besides Earth.
Where would you send the mission?
Give 2 pieces of evidence to justify your decision.