Astronomers using NASA's Hubble Space Telescope have discovered evidence of water vapor in the atmosphere of Jupiter's moon Ganymede for the first time.
According to NASA, the presence of water on Ganymede, the largest moon in the solar system, is likely due to the thermal escape of water vapor from the icy regions on the moon's surface.
"So far only the molecular oxygen had been observed," Lorenz Roth of the KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, Sweden, who led the team who found the vapor, told NASA. "This is produced when charged particles erode the ice surface."
The research and datasets were first unveiled in the journal Nature Astronomy.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
Join the conversation about this story »
NOW WATCH: Sneaky ways stores like H&M, Zara, and Uniqlo get you to spend more money on clothes