The spacecraft called Juice, which was on its way to the frozen moons of Jupiter, confirmed that our planet is indeed habitable by looking at it from a point close to Earth. This probe of the European Space Agency (ESA) used the MAJIS imaging spectrometer and the SWI submillimetre spectrometer to study the Earth’s atmosphere. These instruments detected the presence of molecules and elements that support the existence and continuity of life on Earth. Jokes aside; Of course We already know that life exists on Earth, but This was precisely the goal of astronomers when conducting this research.

Juice’s mission is to study the moons of Jupiter that could potentially host life. That’s exactly why, before arriving at these satellites, scientists pointed Juice’s instruments at Earth to check whether the spacecraft’s detection instruments could accurately detect whether a planet had life on it. Olivier Witasse, ESA planetary scientist, “Of course we are not surprised by these results… However, it would be extremely worrying to hear that the Earth is not habitable!” He explained that this test was the preparation phase for a larger mission. If a vehicle searching for signs of life had said, “Earth is not a habitable planet,” ESA might even have canceled the mission.

What do Juice devices do?

Two instruments on Juice examined various components of the Earth’s atmosphere. MAJIS measured key components such as oxygen, water, ozone and carbon dioxide, while simultaneously producing infrared heat maps of the Earth’s surface. SWI, on the other hand, examined the fundamental building blocks of living organisms, known as “CHNOPS”, which consist of carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen, phosphorus and sulfur. These elements have once again shown that everything necessary for life to exist is available on Earth, and now that they have passed the test, they are one step closer to being ready for use on Jupiter’s moons.

The Juice team will be analyzing this data further to see if it is consistent with other observations. As you may recall, Juice first launched in April of last year and is continuing its planned flights to Earth and Venus before reaching Jupiter. When Juice arrived in orbit around Jupiter in July 2031, it explored the moons Ganymede, Callisto, and Europa. whether these satellites contain environments suitable for life. will investigate.

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