> (By the way, the Cryobot does NOT generate "hydraulic pressure" when it > melts ice -- quite apart from the fact that any such pressure would be > in every direction anyway, remember that water ice is one of the very > few substances that SHRINKS when it melts.)
Ah, here I must disagree with you. Ice can actually increase in size as it melts. If the pressure is high enough, ice changes into other states then the one we're used to (ice I). For instance; the reason why it hard to go skating outside when it colder than -20 degrees celcius is because the ice doesn't melt under the skates, but changes into another state (ice III, if I'm not mistaken). Ice III is actually heavier than liquid water, and will thus expand when melted. So there is a real possibility that there will be some extra pressure on the hull of the cryobot. Though it's possible that this extra pressure might be negligable. And for the working model it's probably not a factor that need to be considered. Ice I changes to ice III (or was it IIa?) when the temperature drops below -20 degrees celcius and the pressure reaches a certain level. On Europa it's a high risk/probability that the probe will encounter other forms of ice. - Marcus == You are subscribed to the Europa Icepick mailing list: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Project information and list (un)subscribe info: http://klx.com/europa/
