Scientists have found that Saturn’s icy moon Enceladus spews a “huge water vapor” into space – and this plume likely contains many chemical components for life. At a conference at the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore on May 17, scientists described the explosion in detail. James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) in November 2022.

He said “Incredible” at the conference Sarah Fudge, a planetary astronomer at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center. A full study of the massive smoke is pending, Fuji said. This isn’t the first time scientists have seen Enceladus spewing water, but the new telescope’s wider perspective and higher sensitivity revealed that the steam jets were firing much farther than previously thought—in fact, many times deeper than Enceladus’ width. . itself. (Enceladus is about 313 miles or 504 kilometers in diameter.)

Scientists first became aware of the water eruptions on Enceladus in 2005 when NASA’s Cassini spacecraft recorded ice particles exploding upwards from large lunar fissures. so-called “tiger stripes”“. With According to NASA, The explosions are so powerful that their materials form one of: saturn rings.

Analysis showed that the jets contained methane, carbon dioxide and ammonia, organic molecules that contain the chemical building blocks necessary for life to evolve. It’s even possible that some of these gases are produced by life itself, releasing methane deep into Enceladus’s surface, an international team of researchers found in a study published last year in The Planetary Science. Daily.

Water is another piece of evidence for possible life on Enceladus. Enceladus is completely covered by a thick layer of water ice, but measurements of the moon’s rotation show that a vast ocean lurks beneath this frozen crust. Scientists believe the jets of water detected by JWST and Cassini originate from hydrothermal vents on the ocean floor. This hypothesis is supported by the presence of silica, a common component of planetary crust, in vapor clouds.

NASA scientists discuss future return missions to look for signs of life on Enceladus. presented Enceladus Orbilander For about six months in orbit of the moon, it would pass through clouds of water and collect samples. The spacecraft will then transform into a lander that will land on the icy moon’s surface. The Orbilander will include a DNA sequencer and a microscope, as well as instruments for weighing and analyzing molecules. Cameras, radio echo sounders and lasers will remotely scan the Moon’s surface, reports The Planetary Society.