The deep ocean of Europa, Jupiter's moon, covered by a thick icy shell, is a probable place to find extraterrestrial life. This study adds elements, including consistent top and bottom heating boundary conditions and the effects of icy shell melting and freezing on ocean salinity, to previous models. The ocean exhibits strong transient convection, eddies, and zonal jets, organizing into Taylor columns parallel to Europa's rotation axis. Meridional oceanic heat transport results in nearly uniform ice thickness, potentially observable in future missions.

Yosef Ashkenazy, Eli Tziperman