New Evidence Enceladus, the Moon, the planet Saturn, is habitable for humans

Liputan6.com, Jakarta – A new study reveals the potential vitality of Enceladus, the planet’s Moon Saturn, for human habitation. The researchers found that the oceanic region of Enceladus may be rich in soluble phosphorus, an essential but previously undetected element of life on this planet in the solar system.

Enceladus, the second Moon found around Saturn, has a thick shell of ice in the middle of a subglacial ocean, which forms a lump that scientists have discovered contains the five basic elements of life, namely carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen and sulfur. . However, the essential element of phosphorus was not found, as quoted by XinhuaTuesday (11/10/2022).

Due to the absence of elemental phosphorus, which is an important component of bones, cell membranes and DNA in humans and animals, Enceladus previously considered unusable by the international scientific community.

However, an international research team led by a number of Chinese scientists have disproved previous findings by claiming to have found elemental phosphorus in the form of phosphates in the oceanic region of the Moon.

In the study, the researchers created a seawater-rock interaction model to simulate the geochemistry of Enceladus’s rocky bottom.

“The seawater on this planet is known to be highly alkaline (very salty) and devoid of oxygen, similar to the sparkling water that people drink all over the world. Land“said lead researcher Hao Jihua of China University of Science and Technology.

video-gallery--item__video-caption_read-video-article">The planets Jupiter and Saturn aligned in the sky appear closer than they have seen for centuries. The last time the two giant planets were seen so closely was in Galileo’s time in the 17th century.