Enceladus has water, but we have the tea 🪐
A study using data from our NASASolarSystem Cassini indicates there may be much more chemical energy inside Saturn’s tiny moon than previously thought – along with evidence of a key ingredient for life.
We’ve known Enceladus is spewing ice grains and water rich with organic compounds from a giant plume – some of which are important to life. New analysis has found a strong confirmation of hydrogen cyanide, a molecule key to the origin of life.
That’s not all – researchers have found evidence of an ocean hiding below the moon’s icy outer shell, this also supports the giant plume with a supercharged source of energy. Unidentified in this study, the source is in the form of several organic compounds, some of which on Earth serve as fuel for organisms.
More chemical energy is brewing inside Saturn’s tiny moon than previously thought. The more energy available, the more likely that life might proliferate and be sustained.
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