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Science 26 March 1999:
Vol. 283. no. 5410, pp. 2062 - 2064
DOI: 10.1126/science.283.5410.2062
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Reports

Hydrogen Peroxide on the Surface of Europa

R. W. Carlson, 1* M. S. Anderson, 1 R. E. Johnson, 2 W. D. Smythe, 1 A. R. Hendrix, 3 C. A. Barth, 3 L. A. Soderblom, 4 G. B. Hansen, 5 T. B. McCord, 5 J. B. Dalton, 6 R. N. Clark, 6 J. H. Shirley, 1 A. C. Ocampo, 1 D. L. Matson 1

Spatially resolved infrared and ultraviolet wavelength spectra of Europa's leading, anti-jovian quadrant observed from the Galileo spacecraft show absorption features resulting from hydrogen peroxide. Comparisons with laboratory measurements indicate surface hydrogen peroxide concentrations of about 0.13 percent, by number, relative to water ice. The inferred abundance is consistent with radiolytic production of hydrogen peroxide by intense energetic particle bombardment and demonstrates that Europa's surface chemistry is dominated by radiolysis.

1 Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA.
2 Engineering Physics, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22903-2442, USA.
3 Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80309-0590, USA.
4 United Stated Geological Survey, Flagstaff, AZ 86001, USA.
5 Planetary Geosciences Division, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI 96822, USA.
6 United States Geological Survey, Denver, CO 80225, USA.
*   To whom correspondence should be addressed at Mail Stop 183-601, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, 4800 Oak Grove Drive, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA. E-mail: rcarlson{at}lively.jpl.nasa.gov

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THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES:
Special Feature: Possible ecosystems and the search for life on Europa.
C. F. Chyba and C. B. Phillips (2001)
PNAS 98, 801-804
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The Galilean Satellites.
A. P. Showman and a. R. Malhotra (1999)
Science 286, 77-84
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Sulfuric Acid on Europa and the Radiolytic Sulfur Cycle.
R. W. Carlson, R. E. Johnson, and M. S. Anderson (1999)
Science 286, 97-99
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