Plume Particle Ejecta Can Trace Habitat-forming Gradients in Ocean Worlds: Insights from Planet Earth Geochemistry
Upcoming explorations for habitability in the ocean worlds of the solar system can greatly benefit from searching beyond parameters such as water, organics, nitrogen, phosphate, and silicate and being able to detect signs of metal catalysis. As metabolism needs metal clusters and nanoparticles, dete...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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IOP Publishing
2025-01-01
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| Series: | The Planetary Science Journal |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.3847/PSJ/adc3f2 |
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| author | Mustafa Yücel Nimet Alımlı Naim Yağız Demir Hilal Cura |
| author_facet | Mustafa Yücel Nimet Alımlı Naim Yağız Demir Hilal Cura |
| author_sort | Mustafa Yücel |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Upcoming explorations for habitability in the ocean worlds of the solar system can greatly benefit from searching beyond parameters such as water, organics, nitrogen, phosphate, and silicate and being able to detect signs of metal catalysis. As metabolism needs metal clusters and nanoparticles, detecting them, disentangling how they form, and linking them to the functioning of Earth’s analog habitats can help us explore the life-supporting processes in ocean worlds like Europa and Enceladus. Here, we present theoretical insights on how nanoparticles in general, and metal-bearing nanoparticles in particular, with their known mechanisms of formation across pH, temperature, and redox gradients and their superior stability and transportability, can serve as a habitability tracer. We outline an interdisciplinary oceanography-planetary science approach based on a case study of Earth analogs of pelagic and deep-sea hydrothermal redox gradients, as this is where the multi-element signatures of suspended marine nanoparticles began to emerge. This approach, incorporating new data sets from multiple sites under different gradients, will enable the linking of such “biogeosignatures” to their representative habitats. This interdisciplinary direction will enhance the interpretations of elemental compositions of ocean world plume ejecta, anticipated to emerge from current space missions like Europa Clipper and JUICE. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-268ff6fcf6c6457ebb46525335fe37f5 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2632-3338 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | IOP Publishing |
| record_format | Article |
| series | The Planetary Science Journal |
| spelling | doaj-art-268ff6fcf6c6457ebb46525335fe37f52025-08-20T03:53:38ZengIOP PublishingThe Planetary Science Journal2632-33382025-01-016410410.3847/PSJ/adc3f2Plume Particle Ejecta Can Trace Habitat-forming Gradients in Ocean Worlds: Insights from Planet Earth GeochemistryMustafa Yücel0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7478-902XNimet Alımlı1Naim Yağız Demir2Hilal Cura3Middle East Technical University , Institute of Marine Sciences, Mersin, Türkiye ; muyucel@metu.edu.trMiddle East Technical University , Institute of Marine Sciences, Mersin, Türkiye ; muyucel@metu.edu.trMiddle East Technical University , Institute of Marine Sciences, Mersin, Türkiye ; muyucel@metu.edu.trMiddle East Technical University , Institute of Marine Sciences, Mersin, Türkiye ; muyucel@metu.edu.trUpcoming explorations for habitability in the ocean worlds of the solar system can greatly benefit from searching beyond parameters such as water, organics, nitrogen, phosphate, and silicate and being able to detect signs of metal catalysis. As metabolism needs metal clusters and nanoparticles, detecting them, disentangling how they form, and linking them to the functioning of Earth’s analog habitats can help us explore the life-supporting processes in ocean worlds like Europa and Enceladus. Here, we present theoretical insights on how nanoparticles in general, and metal-bearing nanoparticles in particular, with their known mechanisms of formation across pH, temperature, and redox gradients and their superior stability and transportability, can serve as a habitability tracer. We outline an interdisciplinary oceanography-planetary science approach based on a case study of Earth analogs of pelagic and deep-sea hydrothermal redox gradients, as this is where the multi-element signatures of suspended marine nanoparticles began to emerge. This approach, incorporating new data sets from multiple sites under different gradients, will enable the linking of such “biogeosignatures” to their representative habitats. This interdisciplinary direction will enhance the interpretations of elemental compositions of ocean world plume ejecta, anticipated to emerge from current space missions like Europa Clipper and JUICE.https://doi.org/10.3847/PSJ/adc3f2Ocean planetsBiosignaturesPre-biotic astrochemistryAstrobiologyHabitable planets |
| spellingShingle | Mustafa Yücel Nimet Alımlı Naim Yağız Demir Hilal Cura Plume Particle Ejecta Can Trace Habitat-forming Gradients in Ocean Worlds: Insights from Planet Earth Geochemistry The Planetary Science Journal Ocean planets Biosignatures Pre-biotic astrochemistry Astrobiology Habitable planets |
| title | Plume Particle Ejecta Can Trace Habitat-forming Gradients in Ocean Worlds: Insights from Planet Earth Geochemistry |
| title_full | Plume Particle Ejecta Can Trace Habitat-forming Gradients in Ocean Worlds: Insights from Planet Earth Geochemistry |
| title_fullStr | Plume Particle Ejecta Can Trace Habitat-forming Gradients in Ocean Worlds: Insights from Planet Earth Geochemistry |
| title_full_unstemmed | Plume Particle Ejecta Can Trace Habitat-forming Gradients in Ocean Worlds: Insights from Planet Earth Geochemistry |
| title_short | Plume Particle Ejecta Can Trace Habitat-forming Gradients in Ocean Worlds: Insights from Planet Earth Geochemistry |
| title_sort | plume particle ejecta can trace habitat forming gradients in ocean worlds insights from planet earth geochemistry |
| topic | Ocean planets Biosignatures Pre-biotic astrochemistry Astrobiology Habitable planets |
| url | https://doi.org/10.3847/PSJ/adc3f2 |
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