The icy moon of Saturn, Enceladus, contains an ocean that is becoming increasingly clear that it is “capable of the existence of life forms,” according to biophysicists who confirm that they have discovered new key elements in it that indicate the possibility of the existence of these life forms on the moon.
The small moon forms a white ball with a diameter of 250 kilometers with a surface that appears to be streaked with scars, and it revolves around Saturn, the sixth planet farthest from the sun.
The Cassini probe, which flew by the Moon several times during its mission to Saturn between 2004 and 2017, proved the existence of a vast ocean of salt water under a thick layer of ice, and discovered effervescences of water vapor flowing from cracks contained in this icy surface.
During its passage through these columns, the probe detected the presence of salt, organic elements, methane, and carbon dioxide, and the analysis of the data recorded by the probe continued long after the end of the mission, similar to the announcement last summer of the detection of phosphorus, another essential element for life.
However, in addition to acetylene, propylene and ethane, the element identified by a team from Harvard University this time was hydrogen cyanide.
The American biophysicist and main author of the study said Jonah Peter“It is an essential component in the formation of more complex molecules, such as amino acids or sugars, which are key to the possibility of life.”
Athena Kostinis, an astrophysicist and planetary scientist at the Paris-Meudon PSL Observatory who did not participate in the study, confirmed that the importance of the new data lies in this molecule, because it constitutes “a component of more complex organic chemistry when talking about conditions for habitability.” .
However, the possibility that the Moon is “habitable” is not related to humans; Because its surface temperature is 200 degrees Celsius on average.
The necessity of returning
The temperature may be much higher in the depths of the ocean, which scientists imagine contains geothermal vents, and these types of chimneys may allow burning gases to escape from the interior of the moon, similar to those observed in the “Lost City,” a deep region in the Atlantic Ocean containing… Holes provide the energy needed for chemical reactions.
The discovery of hydrogen in Enceladus plumes, which was announced in 2017, was evidence of hydrothermal activity.
“It is highly likely that the sample of material collected by the Cassini probe comes from the ocean beneath the surface of Enceladus,” Peter said.
The new element discovered by the Harvard team enhances interest in the small moon of Saturn.
“It combines almost all the conditions that would enable it to be habitable: liquid, energy sources, nutrients – the basic elements of organic chemistry – as well as a stable environment,” Kostinis said, as do Titan, another moon of Saturn, and Jupiter’s two moons, Europa. And Ganymede.
To confirm these data, additional observational data must be obtained. The European Space Agency’s “Goss” mission, which was launched last April, will focus on Ganymede, and during the coming year, NASA’s “Europa Clipper” mission will target the moon Europa.
As for Enceladus, Peter said: “To learn more about the geysers and the ocean, we have to go back to its surroundings, but with more precise tools, and try to extract a sample.
Athena Kostinis pointed out that this step stands out “in the goals of the European Space Agency,” within its “Voyage 2015” program, welcoming all these “missions that bring the solar system into the race to explore life beyond Earth.”
It is necessary to be patient, as the journey from Cassini to Saturn took seven years.
