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Ok, last night I had a really weird dream. I know what brought it on, I had just watched the movie 2010 again. But the dream raised some interesting questions that I need some answers for if you guys would be so kind.
Alright, in my dream I was standing on the surface of Europa. I was on some kind of tour because there was another man in a spacesuit standing next to me explaining some of the things I was seeing. For instance, the sky was [itch black and filled with stars and a few clouds. In the sky were 5 very bright stars. the guide explained that they were actually the same star, our sun, and that I was seeing 5 of them because 4 large mirriors were in orbit to increase the amount of solar energy the moon recieved.
I walked around for a bit on Europa, though it looked more like Antartica near dark. Then, out of nowhere, this huge blinding light zoomed past me. The guide grabbed me and pulled me back warning me not to venture anymore in that direction because a giant laser made of concentrated sunlight was orbiting the moon and melting the ice. On retrospect, I thought this was odd because the moon is tidal locked isn't it?
Anyways, the guide explained to me that the laser had two main benefits. One is to kick water vapor into the 'atmosphere' and make the most of the additional sunlight to create a greenhouse effect. He also said that most of the water vapor is broken down quickly because theres no protection from high energy particles like cosmic rays. The interesting thing was in my dream the water vapor was in effect being used to create a breathable atmosphere because the hydrogen drifts off into space easily due to low gravity but the oxygen remains.
Now I see obvious problems with this, it was afterall a dream, but could something like this be done? In my dream the guide said that the clouds of water vapor create clouds which create their own lightning and help split the water into hydrogen and oxygen. Now, an atmosphere of mostly oxygen would burn itself out right? We'd need some kind of inert gas like nitrogen to keep the oxygen from burning itself out right?
Well, it was an awesome and terrifing dream. I wish I could have saved it and watched it several times.
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I still like the mini-sun concept more :b.
The MiniTruth passed its first act #001, comname: PATRIOT ACT on October 26, 2001.
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I think (reading in Zubrin's 'Entering Space') that the current levels of radiation on Europa's surface would be too high. He did mention that it would be possible to land and get quickly to an underground shelter. So, a base maybe, but not a colony.
Now these are just current numbers. With a thicker atmosphere the story would change, but I don't know by how much.
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Sounds like a wet dream to me.
What?! What did I say? He was talking about water vapor on Europa. Come on, get your head out of the gutter.
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Well that's just the thing. if we were to terraform Europa and say we snap our fingers and bam! melted all the ice, we'd be left with an ocean dozens of miles deep, probably over a hundred. It would be an ocean world.
Here's an interesting thought: seed the oceans of Europa with our ocean ecology and then feeding an Earth with a population over 20 billion becomes possible. Europa's low gravity would make shipping tons of fish to LEO rather cheap if a railgun were used. Wow, just picture it, interplanetary fish zooming through the inner solar system frozen and being caught in orbit by a gigantic net!
Seriously though, why isn't there more interest in Europa? Unlimited water and fuel at our fingertips. Is it because to our conventional minds Europa is further away than Mars? Perhaps Mars' atmosphere makes aerobraking more economical than Europa's low gravity?
I have also read that the radiation at the surface of Europa is deadly by human standards, but isn't it low intensity radiation? By that I mean that it is blocked effectively by a few feet of water or ice. I didn't think Jupiter was emitting highly charged particles that can pierce all that ice.
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