A study conducted at the Southwest Research Institute has revealed that there are important building blocks for life on the moon Enceladus.
The question of whether there is life in space has been one of the most curious questions in human history for centuries. Many scientific researches have been conducted to find the answer to this question. Saturn, which has already made a name for itself in this regard, continues to be the subject of important findings.
Saturn’s moon Enceladus hosts a habitable ocean
Saturn is home to many unknowns. Especially the studies conducted on its moons have surprised astronomers for years. Finally, Enceladus, Saturn’s sixth largest moon, came to the fore with important findings about the traces of life. It was revealed that an ocean on the moon has the building blocks necessary for life.
Christopher Glein, a scientist from the Southwest Research Institute, said;
We have found evidence that one of the key elements necessary for life on Earth should be present in high quantities in the Enceladus ocean. This suggests that Enceladus is more habitable than previously thought.
The data for the study came from NASA’s Cassini probe. The research, which simulates how minerals dissolve in the Enceladus moon’s ocean and allows researchers to measure the amount of phosphorus in the moon, was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. On the other hand, scientists see Enceladus as a possible habitat.
This is not the first time the satellite has been in the news. Last year, an unknown methane-producing process took place in the hidden ocean beneath the icy crust of Enceladus. Giant clouds of water gushing from the satellite have long attracted the attention of scientists. Scientists believe that certain molecules associated with hydrothermal vents at the bottom of Earth’s oceans
