NASA may have just stumbled upon one of the most significant breakthroughs in astronomy and that is water plumes spewing from the icy shells of Europa, one of Jupiter's moons.

Europa has become one of the satellites scientists have taken an interest on, given the fact that this Jupiter's moon could potentially shelter life in the solar system. On Monday, NASA discovered that within the icy shells of the moon, there is an ocean of liquid water swirling around. The more interesting sighting is that the water plumes erupt into space, The Guardian reported.

Just how important is this eruption to human existence? Because Europa is being theorized to have the potential of harboring life forms, this moon could possibly become a second Earth in the future. With the knowledge of bursting water plumes from Europa into space, scientists would now have an easier alternative in extracting liquid from the satellite. Take note that the original plan was to drill through the icy shells of Europa to obtain water for scientific studies.

NASA used the Hubble Space Telescope to take a closer look at this particular moon of Jupiter, said the Independent UK. As they gazed at Europa, the astronomers noticed a curious movement on the moon's south pole, where they think water is located. The theory is that Europa holds two times more water than all of the Earth's oceans combined.

The team, led by William Sparks, estimated that the plume eruptions can burst up as high as 125m. The plume then drops back to the surface of Europa. At first, Sparks and company studied the water clouds using the same method they use when studying different atmospheres in the solar system.

With this new discovery, NASA is even more pumped up to carry out a mission to Europa that will cement the existence of water plumes. As such, the eruption of these liquid clouds definitely provides a better way to get samples of Europa's water for further scientific research.

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