A recent study suggests that if extraterrestrial life exists within the Solar System, it might be located on Enceladus, Saturn's sixth-largest moon. NASA said in a news release that James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has observed a remarkably extensive water vapor plume originating from the moon's south pole, spanning over 6,000 miles, a distance comparable to that between Los Angeles and Buenos Aires.
Enceladus is unique among Saturn's moons as it possesses a liquid water ocean, resembling Earth in this aspect. The cause of the substantial plume remains uncertain, but scientists speculate that it could be indicative of the potential presence of alien life within the moon's ocean.
In this handout image provided by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), looking toward the sunlit side of the rings, Saturn's rings and the icy moon Enceladus are seen in visible light with the Cassini spacecraft wide-angle camera on Aug. 18, 2015.
Enormous Size of the Plume Surprised Scientists
Enceladus is characterized by its pristine white appearance, covered in a substantial ice layer exceeding 12 miles in thickness. Previous knowledge indicated the presence of water jets and ice particles emanating from fractures known as "tiger stripes" on its frozen surface.
However, scientists were astounded by the magnitude of the newly observed plume, marking the first instance of such an extensive water emission. According to MailOnline, the sheer scale of the water plume, over 20 times the size of Enceladus itself, left researchers initially questioning the accuracy of their findings.
The water plume extends far beyond its source region at the moon's southern pole, and the water vapor is released at a remarkable rate of approximately 79 gallons per second, equivalent to filling an Olympic-sized swimming pool in just a few hours. To provide a comparison, accomplishing the same feat with a garden hose on Earth would take more than two weeks.
The observations from the Webb telescope revealed not only the tremendous size of the plume but also the pervasive presence of water throughout the moon's vicinity, resembling a halo or donut-like structure as it traverses Saturn.
Moreover, Enceladus serves as a water source for the entire Saturnian system, including the planet itself and its other moons. Analysis of the Webb telescope's data demonstrated that approximately 30% of the water remains within a torus-shaped region surrounding Enceladus, while the remaining 70% escapes supplying water to the rest of the Saturnian system.
The findings of the study, titled "JWSTMolecular Mapping and Characterization of Enceladus' Water Plume Feeding Its
Torus" available as a preprint, has unveiled the vital role of Enceladus in maintaining the water supply across Saturn's cosmic neighborhood.
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Is Enceladus Home to Extraterrestrial Life?
As MailOnline reported, the existence of life within Enceladus's liquid ocean remains uncertain, although researchers have noted that the moon possesses the necessary conditions to support it. Last December, experts disclosed the presence of phosphorus in the ocean, an essential component for constructing DNA and RNA.
With this discovery, Enceladus now fulfills all the criteria for hosting a habitable ocean. Jet Propulsion Laboratory astrobiologist Morgan Cable told Science News that Enceladus already contains carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen, and sulfur.
Additionally, the moon's plumes release methane gas, an organic molecule often associated with microbial life. This presence of methane has led scientists to speculate that microbes may either currently inhabit or have previously resided beneath Enceladus's icy exterior.
Enceladus initially garnered attention when NASA's Voyager 1 spacecraft conducted a survey in 1980, revealing its reflective icy surface. However, it was not until 2014, with data from the Cassini space probe, that the moon's significance escalated.
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