Life on Europa Could Feed On This Unexpected Source of Energy

Scientists are proposing a new source of fuel for potential alien life on Europa: Radioactive elements seeping out of rocks and into the moon’s ocean, where it could generate enough energy to support living organisms.

Research presented at the annual meeting of the American Geophysical Union in New Orleans puts forth a new model for the potential for life on Jupiter’s icy moon. The new model suggests that rocks themselves, rather than the moon’s internal heat, may be the reason…