Scientific Trends: Could one of Saturn's moons support life? | News | CORDIS

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The community explored the distant lands of the galaxy, looking for exoplanets with signs of extraterrestrial life. All the time, the answer could be right here in our own solar system.

In 2017, NASA provided new evidence that one of the two places most likely to find life beyond Earth was Saturn's Enceladus. In terms of potential livability, this oceanic moon contains almost all the key ingredients of life as we know it.

A study published in the journal Nature indicates that Enceladus meets all basic requirements for accommodation. A research team led by Dr. Frank Postberg of the University of Heidelberg in Germany based his findings on data collected after 13 years of observations by the Cassini spacecraft

This is not the first time that Cassini detects organic molecules on Enceladus. But it's their size that is the real game changer. The earlier molecules were light, but these fragments are much bigger. Such large molecules can only be created by complex chemical processes, including those related to life. By studying Saturn and its moons, Cassini revealed some of Enceladus' secrets along the way. He discovered a huge ocean of water below his icy crust.

Complex organic molecules offer a tantalizing allusion to a livable environment

Researchers have found evidence of carbon-rich substances formed in the heart of Enceladus. These compounds are thought to have formed in reactions between water and hot rock at the base of the moon's underground ocean. "These huge molecules contain a complex network often constructed from hundreds of atoms," said Dr. Postberg, who is also one of the authors of the study, at the "BBC". "It's the very first detection of such complex organic compounds from an alien aquatic world."

These types of compounds have only been discovered on Earth. They are not a sign of life, but their presence suggests that Enceladus could host living organisms. "They are a necessary precursor to life," he added, "[but] we can not say whether these substances are biologically irrelevant or signs of prebiotic chemistry or even life."

Enceladus: the best candidate for life [19659005"AuparavantonnesavaitpassilachimieorganiquecomplexeseproduisaitsurEnceladus-etmaintenantnouslesavons"aexpliquéleDrPostbergdans"Independent"duRoyaumeKingdom"C'estbiensûrl'unedesplusgrandesquestionsscientifiques-lavieextraterrestre:ouiounon-etvoiciunendroitoùnouspouvonsvérifierNousavonsunenvironnementhabitablelà-basetnousavonslesmoyensdelesonderpoursavoirs'ilyadelavieréelleounon"[19659005] In 2017, Cassini 's mission to collect data on Saturn was broken and burned in the atmosphere.This abruptly ended the joint mission between NASA, the European Space Agency and the European Space Agency. Italian Space Agency So what now? "The next logical step," concluded Dr. Postberg in his interview with the "BBC," "is to return to Enceladus soon with a dedicated payload and see what happens next. there is an extraterrestrial life. "