Very little was known about Enceladus prior to 2005 — the year when NASA’s Cassini orbiter first flew close. Since then, it has become a continuous source of surprises.
During Cassini’s incredible career, planetary researchers discovered that Enceladus has a sub-surface ocean hidden underneath an icy crust, with evidence pointing to powerful hydrothermal vents on the seabed that mix up material from the moon’s water-filled, porous core with the ocean water.
Cassini also detected geysers releasing a mixture of water vapor and ice grains from the ocean into space through cracks — known as ‘tiger stripes’ — in the moon’s icy shell, providing material for Saturn’s E-ring.
Now, the scientists have identified fragments of complex organic molecules in these ejected ice grains.
“It is the first ever detection of complex organics coming from an extraterrestrial water-world,” Dr. Postberg said.
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