Scientists Say Exomoons Might Host Extraterrestrial Life

Exomoon could be the place to prove life also exists outside planet Earth as scientists discovered a trail of radio wave leading to it.

Exomoons, also called extrasolar moons, are natural satellites orbiting an extrasolar and exoplanet body.

Radio wave emission has been found by scientists that led to an interaction between Jupiter’s moon Io and its magnetic field.

Researcher Zdzislaw Musielak from the University of Texas said this is a new method of searching at things with the use of radio waves since they have discovered star systems.

Enceladus and Europa, moons of Saturn and Jupiter respectively, have the ability to host life based on their distance from the sun and potential for water, according to scientists.

Musielak said that there is no scientific method yet that could allow them to easily spot exomoons.

Scientists have been using earlier theories as the basis for their study on discovering exoplanets through radio waves.

They are more interested now on Io and its ionosphere, a charged upper atmosphere formed by the moon’s active volcanoes.

Scientists found out that Io’s ionosphere interacts with the magnetosphere of Jupiter. This magnetosphere is charged with plasma that protects the Jupiter from radiation, known as Io-controlled decametric emissions.

Searching for similar emissions close to exoplanets could predict the location of other moons, according to the scientists.

They explained that these other moons do not necessarily have volcanic activity like Io to be considered habitable.

Saturn’s largest moon Titan can hold a thick atmosphere, a great example that volcanic activity is not a requirement to be considered an exomoon.

According to scientists, most exoplanets that have been detected are gas giants discovered in habitable zones. They said that these gas giants may not support life but the exomoons that orbit them might host life.