Science News Roundup: China puts final satellite into orbit; Frigid dwarf planet Pluto may have started out its life as a hothead and more

An analysis of images of its surface taken in 2015 by NASA's New Horizons spacecraft and computer simulations of the dwarf planet's interior led the researchers to propose a "hot start" scenario for Pluto's formation some 4.5 billion years ago as the solar system, including Earth, took shape.

Following is a summary of current science news briefs.

Subsurface ocean on Jupiter's moon Europa deemed potentially 'habitable'

Scientists have figured out how the subsurface ocean on Jupiter's moon Europa may have formed and determined that this vast expanse of water may have been able to support microbial life in the past. Europa, with an ocean hidden beneath a thick shell of ice, long has been viewed as a potential habitat for extraterrestrial life in our solar system, alongside other candidates such as Mars and Saturn's moon Enceladus. A new study presented on Wednesday at a geoscience conference underscores its potential.

Siberian heat wave is a 'warning cry' from the Arctic, climate scientists say

Pine trees are bursting into flames. Boggy peatlands are tinderbox dry. And towns in northern Russia are sweltering under conditions more typical of the tropics. Reports of record-breaking Arctic heat registered at more than 100 Fahrenheit (38 Celsius) in the Siberian town of Verkhoyansk on June 20 – are still being verified by the World Meteorological Organization. But even without that confirmation, experts at the global weather agency are worried by satellite images showing that much of the Russian Arctic is in the red.

China puts final satellite into orbit to try to rival GPS network

China on Tuesday successfully put into orbit its final Beidou satellite, completing a navigation network years in the making and setting the stage to challenge the U.S.-owned Global Positioning System (GPS). The idea to develop Beidou, or the Big Dipper in Chinese, took shape in the 1990s as China's military sought to reduce its reliance on GPS, which is run by the U.S. Air Force.

Frigid dwarf planet Pluto may have started out its life as a hothead

Pluto, a frigid little world inhabiting the solar system's outer reaches, may have been born as a warmer place sheltering a subsurface ocean that still exists today, researchers said on Monday. An analysis of images of its surface taken in 2015 by NASA's New Horizons spacecraft and computer simulations of the dwarf planet's interior led the researchers to propose a "hot start" scenario for Pluto's formation some 4.5 billion years ago as the solar system, including Earth, took shape.

(With inputs from agencies.)