Colonization of Europa

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Space colonization

Mercury
Venus
Earth
- Moon
Mars

Asteroids

Ceres

Outer solar system

Jupiter
- Europa
Saturn
- Titan
Pluto
Kuiper Belt and Oort Cloud

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The Artemis Project designed a plan to colonize Europa. ^[1]^[2] According to the plan, scientists are to inhabit igloos and drill down into the Europan ice crust, exploring any sub-surface ocean. The plan also discusses use of air pockets for human inhabitation. This Europa surface base would also make use of inflatable structures. Exploration of Europa and its subglacial ocean would be carried out with submarines. ^[3]

There are some difficulties related to the colonization of Europa; one significant problem is a high level of radiation from Jupiter's radiation belt, which is approximately 10 times as strong as Earth's Van Allen radiation belts. A human being would not survive at or near the surface of Europa for long without very large scale radiation shielding. Another problem is that the surface temperature of Europa normally rests at 103 kelvins (−170 degrees Celsius). Colonists on Europa would have to descend to and ascend from the surface relatively quickly (though not while Europa is passing through Jupiter's magnetotail), and stay in habitats buried under the surface while there. ^[4]