The Hubble space telescope has discovered that there is a salty ocean beneath the Surface of Ganymede – the largest moon of Jupiter. Called the ocean of Ganymede, the ocean is said to be saltier than that of earth. There is a thick crust of ice above the ocean and that thick crust has more water than on the oceans of earth.

According to scientists, the ocean is about 10 times the depth of earth’s oceans and 60 miles wide. Scientists are also considering the fact that there may be more worlds where water is in abundance. The Hubble space telescope also discovered that that there may be signs of flooding and some parts of the moon have been formed by volcanic activity.

Scientists believed that water was there on Ganymede before the discovery; Ganymede is around 3,273 miles across and has a magnetic field. Latest evidence confirms the previous assumptions that there is water under the icy crust of the moon. Scientists say that their data supports their claims.

Scientists have also noticed that magnetic field of the moon changes when the magnetic field of Jupiter changes and aurora fields are also controlled by the magnetic fields. Scientists believe that auroras are a good indicator of water and they are hopeful to identify more planets through the Hubble space telescope.

Similar methods can be used to detect water on planets by monitoring the auroras on planets but researchers will need a bigger telescope than Hubble. The bigger telescope will give them a clearer picture.