The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) thinks extraterrestrial life in our solar system might exist under the icy surface of Europa.

Before, people said life could be found in the old canals of Mars. The best bet has now shifted to Jupiter's moon Europa, which at first glance appears to be a frozen ball of ice.

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Scientists, however, believe Europa's appearance is deceiving. They think beneath Europa's icy shell lies a tidally-heated liquid water ocean that could contain all the building blocks necessary for life.

The new theory surfaced when scientists began seeing vapor plumes emanating from Europa's surface.

This is why NASA has begun requesting funds be allocated towards a mission beyond the asteroid belt to Europa. In July, it put out a call for proposals for science instruments to help search for signs of life on Europa.

The possibility of life on Europa is a motivating force for scientists and engineers around the world, said NASA's John Grunsfeld.

While there are a lot of skeptics that doubt the mission, astrobiologist Kevin Hand (who works with NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory) says there's a high degree of confidence there's a liquid ocean on Europa that's existed for billions of years.

The real question, however, is whether or not that ocean is active enough to allow a probe to peel away minerals from solid rocks presumed to be at its bottom.

"For the first time in the history of humanity we have the tools and technology and capability to potentially answer this question (of the existence of life beyond Earth), and we know where to go to find it." Hand says. "Jupiter's ocean world, Europa."

TagsEuropa, Jupiter, life