Summary
In the fascinating podcast episode Cosmic Queries – Volcanoes & Life in the Universe, astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson and planetary scientist Natalie Starkey, PhD, embark on an engaging discussion about volcanic activity, celestial bodies, and the search for life in the universe. The episode begins by discussing the possibility of finding the building blocks for life on comets, as demonstrated by the Stardust mission, which collected amino acids from these celestial bodies.
A critical aspect discussed is ensuring the non-contamination of extraterrestrial samples while studying them. The episode also touches upon magnetic fields and how they tend to exist in celestial bodies with heat and activity, such as those with liquid oceans beneath their icy crusts. One such phenomenon, cryovolcanism, occurs in celestial bodies with a rocky core and a salty liquid ocean beneath the surface.
Tyson and Starkey also discuss the role of tidal forces in generating heat on moons orbiting large planets, and how celestial bodies that have cooled down, like Mars and the Moon, no longer experience volcanic activity. The search for extraterrestrial life is approached through the lens of seeking habitable environments with the necessary ingredients for life, such as liquid water and heat. Finding signs of microbial life is acknowledged as a challenge.
The hosts talk about the habitable zone (Goldilocks zone) and the possibility of life even beyond it, thanks to geological activity. Several space missions are discussed, such as the European Space Agency's JUICE mission, which aims to explore Jupiter's moons Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto. The mission is compared to NASA's Europa Clipper, both of which look for signs of life in these moons' potential subsurface oceans.
The podcast also delves into geothermal energy, its environmental considerations, and how Iceland harnesses this abundant renewable resource. The duo goes on to describe differences in volcanic eruptions between Earth and the Moon, and how ejected material may escape into space.
Lastly, the search for life in extreme environments is explored, highlighting the importance of focusing on observable sciences before venturing into unknown forms of life. Overall, the episode provides a captivating exploration of volcanoes, celestial bodies, and the quest to find other forms of life in the universe.
