The giant ocean on Saturn's moon may contain life

Saturn's moon Enceladus has a giant ocean located 2 km deep beneath the southernmost ice surface.

Using data from Cassini probe of the US Aeronautics Agency (NASA), the team at the University of Versailles Saint-Quentin (UVSQ), France, discovered the warm Saturn moon Enceladus more than previously anticipated, and most likely there is a huge ocean below the surface about 2km, according to IFL Science. Research results are published in the journal Nature Astronomy on March 13.

The composition of the moon Enceladus and the steam stream sprayed up from the south pole.(Photo: NASA).

Scientists believe that most areas on Enceladus have a layer of ice from 18 to 22 km thick and this ice is thinner in the south pole. Under the ice is a huge ocean with favorable conditions for life to grow like hydrothermal activity. This may be a promising place to find alien life forms.

"Observed data from the Cassini spacecraft shows an insight into what is happening below the surface of Enceladus moon , " said Alice Le Gall, lead author of the study.

At the southern end, the moon Enceladus spewed enormous steam and other matter from cracks in the surface. The Cassini spacecraft detected the salt content in the steam stream, indicating that the ocean interacted with Enceladus' rock core.

Le Gall said the moon Enceladus was heated by sunlight as well as Saturn's repulsion and pulling. New research seems to reaffirm this hypothesis, when the thin southern envelope is more sensitive to tidal heating.