{"id":185789,"date":"2025-10-02T20:14:08","date_gmt":"2025-10-02T20:14:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/185789\/"},"modified":"2025-10-02T20:14:08","modified_gmt":"2025-10-02T20:14:08","slug":"saturns-moon-enceladus-may-be-able-to-support-life-scientists-say","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/185789\/","title":{"rendered":"Saturn\u2019s moon Enceladus may be able to support life, scientists say"},"content":{"rendered":"

Open this photo in gallery:<\/a><\/p>\n

NASA\u2019s Cassini spacecraft captured this image of Enceladus on Nov. 30, 2010, with the geyser-like jets of ice grains clearly visible.The Associated Press<\/p>\n

A fresh look at data collected by NASA\u2019s Cassini spacecraft has uncovered more evidence that Saturn\u2019s moon Enceladus may be able to support life, with additional complex organic molecules identified from the geyser-like jets of ice grains that spew into space from this small icy world\u2019s subsurface ocean.<\/p>\n

Researchers re-examined in great detail data obtained when Cassini conducted its closest flyby of Enceladus in 2008, including when it flew directly through plumes of ice grains and gases erupting from the ice-encrusted moon\u2019s surface through fractures near its south pole. In doing so, they were able to gain a clearer picture of the moon\u2019s subsurface chemistry.<\/p>\n

In addition to confirming the presence of certain organic molecules, including precursors for amino acids \u2013 the building blocks of proteins, the large and complex molecules essential for life \u2013 previously detected in the plumes, they found new classes of organic molecules not spotted before. \u201cWe have found several categories of organic \u2013 meaning primarily carbon-containing \u2013 molecules that span a range of structures and chemical properties,\u201d said Nozair Khawaja, a planetary scientist at Freie Universit\u00e4t Berlin and lead author of the study published this week in the journal Nature Astronomy.<\/p>\n

Open this photo in gallery:<\/a><\/p>\n

Saturn’s ocean-bearing moon Enceladus taken in visible light with the Cassini spacecraft narrow-angle camera on Nov. 27, 2016.NASA NASA\/Reuters<\/p>\n

These are the type of molecules that could be involved under the right circumstances in the processes leading to the formation of more complex organic compounds that are essential components for life.<\/p>\n

\u201cSuch compounds are believed to be intermediates in the synthesis of more complex molecules, which could be potentially biologically relevant. It is important to note, however, that these molecules can be formed abiotically as well without any interaction with life on Earth,\u201d Khawaja said. Enceladus is considered one of the most intriguing places in our solar system to look for possible life beyond Earth. Named after a giant in ancient Greek mythology, it is one of the innermost moons of the ringed gas giant Saturn, our solar system\u2019s second-largest planet. It has a diameter of 313 miles (504 km) and orbits Saturn at a distance of roughly 148,000 miles (238,000 km).<\/p>\n

Scientists believe Enceladus possesses the chemical ingredients needed for life and has hydrothermal vents releasing hot, mineral-rich water into its ocean, the same type of environment that may have spawned Earth\u2019s first living organisms. Its ocean resides under a crust of ice about 12-19 miles (20-30 km) thick.<\/p>\n

\u201cFirst of all, we did not find life on Enceladus and we did not find any biosignatures,\u201d Khawaja said, referring to anything indicative of life, past or present.<\/p>\n

\u201cEven if such things exist there, I doubt that we would find it in the data of Cassini\u2019s instruments, which were decades-old technology. However, we have compelling evidence that all three keystones of habitability \u2013 liquid water, an energy source and essential elements and organics \u2013 exist on Enceladus,\u201d Khawaja said.<\/p>\n

The researchers conducted a comprehensive chemical analysis of the ice grains sampled directly from the plume during Cassini\u2019s flyby at a speed of about 40,250 miles (64,800 km) per hour. These grains are tiny bits of frozen water from the subsurface ocean that had been ejected only minutes earlier, so they were not altered over time by intense space radiation like the ice grains from Enceladus that form a ring around Saturn that traces the moon\u2019s orbital path.<\/p>\n

The chemical properties of the plume grains thus reflected complex chemical reactions occurring in the ocean.<\/p>\n

The European Space Agency is planning a future mission to return to Enceladus.<\/p>\n

\u201cEnceladus is, and should be ranked, as the prime target to explore habitability and search whether there is life or not,\u201d Khawaja said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Open this photo in gallery: NASA\u2019s Cassini spacecraft captured this image of Enceladus on Nov. 30, 2010, with…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":185790,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[901,888,902,879,877,903,49,48,876,895,896,891,878,875,46,549,295,894,887,914,880,881,893,889,890,884,904,885,909,910,912,907,911,905,908,882,898,899,714,897,906,66,865,61,900,892,886,883,913],"class_list":["post-185789","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-science","tag-alberta","tag-arts-news","tag-bc","tag-breaking-news","tag-breaking-news-video","tag-british-columbia","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-canada-news","tag-canada-sports","tag-canada-sports-news","tag-canada-trafficcanada-weather","tag-canadian-breaking-news","tag-canadian-news","tag-economy","tag-education","tag-environment","tag-federal-government","tag-foreign-news","tag-globe-and-mail","tag-globe-and-mail-breaking-news","tag-globe-and-mail-canada-news","tag-government","tag-life-news","tag-lifestyle","tag-local-news","tag-manitoba","tag-national-news","tag-new-brunswick","tag-newfoundland-and-labrador","tag-northwest-territories","tag-nova-scotia","tag-nunavut","tag-ontario","tag-pei","tag-photos","tag-political-news","tag-political-opinion","tag-politics","tag-politics-news","tag-quebec","tag-science","tag-sports-news","tag-technology","tag-travel","tag-trudeau","tag-us-news","tag-world-news","tag-yukon"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/185789","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=185789"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/185789\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/185790"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=185789"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=185789"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=185789"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}