Europa, Edited by Robert T. Pappalardo; William B. McKinnon; Krishan Khurana; The University of Arizona Press; Tucson, Arizona (hardcover); $85.00; 2009.
This book serves up a heavy dose of scientific papers geared to unveiling mysterious Europa – an icy moon of Jupiter. A volume in the prestigious Space Science Series, you find a rich compilation of work from more than 80 contributing authors.
The façade of Europa, an icy shell, is believed to hide a subsurface ocean. That enticing prospect fuels the speculative thought that the moon sports a water-rich environment ideal for life.
This five-part book is divided into history, origin, and dynamics; geology and surface; interior, icy shell, and ocean; external environment; and astrobiology and perspectives.
What makes this book timely is the international work underway to send a flagship-class mission to Europa. Why this moon has become a magnet for scientific study and future exploration is well-documented in this collection of top-notch, but for the most part, heavy-duty scientific papers.
As the editors of this book point out: “The authors of this volume aim to take a step back, collating what we think we know, what we don’t know, and what we’d like to know about Europa.”
From Galileo’s 1610 observations of the Jupiter system to the 21st century view that Europa harbors a subsurface liquid water ocean – this over 700-page book underscores why this moon has become a top target in our search for life beyond Earth.
For more information on this book, go to:
http://www.uapress.arizona.edu/BOOKS/bid2088.htm
By Leonard David