subsurface oceans

Researchers at Freie Universität Berlin, working with Cassini mission data, report new findings on Saturn's icy moon Enceladus that strengthen the case for potentially habitable conditions beneath its frozen surface. The results, published in a science journal, point to chemistry in the moon's subsurface ocean that could support microbial life. The work is drawing broad attention in the science community.

A new report suggests Enceladus, Saturn's icy moon, may make it easier than previously believed for scientists to detect signs of alien life. The moon is known for the plumes of water vapour erupting from its subsurface ocean, which space probes have already sampled. The claim is that biosignatures could be found more readily in that material than researchers assumed.