Jupiter’s moon Europa is thought to harbor a liquid ocean beneath its icy crust, and many scientists believe that life could inhabit this watery environment. In February, NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA) announced that they will be collaborating on a new mission to Jupiter and its four largest moons.

The Europa Jupiter System Mission (EJSM) is currently planned to include orbiting spacecraft that will analyze Io, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto from a distance. However, researchers around the world are also examining the potential for instruments that could operate at, or even below the surface of such bodies. One such concept is a mole-like thermal drill being developed by scientists in France and Hong Kong. As NASA and ESA begin to define their roles and budgets for future missions to icy moons, technologies like the thermal drill could help astrobiologists collect the data they need to determine whether or not these unique locations could support life.