NASA Just Revealed There Could Be Life On Saturn's Moon, Enceladus

Since NASA's Cassini spacecraft detected gaseous hydrogen spouting from Saturn's Enceladus, scientists have hypothesized that the moon may have hydrothermal vents capable of supporting life.


We got nominated for a People's Choice Webby! That means, you can help us win. Please, take a minute and vote for us here (thanks!):

Read More:

NASA: Saturn's Ice Moon Enceladus Might Be Capable of Supporting Life
"Saturn's icy moon Enceladus is looking more and more like a habitable world. The same sorts of chemical reactions that sustain life near deep-sea hydrothermal vents here on Earth could potentially be occurring within Enceladus' subsurface ocean, a new study published today (April 13) in the journal Science suggests. These reactions depend on the presence of molecular hydrogen (H2), which, the new study reports, is likely being produced continuously by reactions between hot water and rock deep down in Enceladus' sea."

NASA Missions Provide New Insights into "Ocean Worlds" in Our Solar System
"Two veteran NASA missions are providing new details about icy, ocean-bearing moons of Jupiter and Saturn, further heightening the scientific interest of these and other 'ocean worlds' in our solar system and beyond. The findings are presented in papers published Thursday by researchers with NASA's Cassini mission to Saturn and Hubble Space Telescope. In the papers, Cassini scientists announce that a form of chemical energy that life can feed on appears to exist on Saturn's moon Enceladus, and Hubble researchers report additional evidence of plumes erupting from Jupiter's moon Europa."

NASA Finds Evidence of Hydrothermal Vents on Saturn's Moon Enceladus
"When NASA researchers first realized in 2005 that Saturn's moon Enceladus has liquid water under its surface, they were stunned. 'Tremendously exciting,' Cassini project scientist Linda Spilker told Popular Mechanics. 'I sort of call it jaw-dropping because we were so certain that Enceladus was too small to support activity like this. We expected it to be frozen solid.' Since then, the Cassini spacecraft orbiting Saturn has sent back amazing visuals and data about this small watery moon, now considered one of the best places to look for life beyond Earth."

____________________

Seeker inspires us to see the world through the lens of science and evokes a sense of curiosity, optimism and adventure.









Special thanks to Julian Huguet for hosting and writing this episode of Seeker!

[Mrwiseguy]

NASA should tell the government they found oil. Watch the funding skyrocket (pun intended).

[charliebennett]

Its inevitable that we'll find life "somewhere" I can only hope that it's in my lifetime!

[danb]

If we find life on one of those moons
It confirms that LIFE IS VERY COMMON

[grainne]

Oh it would be so exciting to discover life somewhere outside of earth. I just fear that we might exploit that life or disrupt it in a negative way

[bluemeannie]

Why do scientists think all life needs Oxygen their could be some life form that breathes some completely different element that we don't know?

[zeekjones]

"What would happen?" We'd have the most expensive seafood menu in this system.

[robj]

Wouldn't it be ironic if we are inadvertently "seeding" life in the places we explore by contaminating them?

[ortus]

If we do happen to find life on other planets, just... Don't Panic. Get it? His shirt..?

[marvinthemartian]

Oh dear. Now I shall have to create more Martians.

[RTheSingleHanded]

Can we just find a Mass Relay on mars?!

[THESocialJusticeWarrior]

More likely to find life there than on Mars. Mars died 3 billion years ago.

[brwnydb]

voted. you guys are in first place right now

[rezastella]

You guys should watch "Europa report", awesome sci-fi about the same concept.

[mannybobby]

glad to see seeker is still doing some videos Dnews style

[noahmartin]

love the hitchhiker's guide shirt

[fridun]

We don't need find life, although there ain't nothing wrong with that. We just to find evidence that there was life. And what's more important? Finding alien life or finding a place suitable for human colonization?

[karateJeff]

Please keep up videos like this. We known all of this from the 70s. And i love seeing new videos like this and new information.

[Will-dkuw]

I do not recall subscribing to this channel

[Swapnil]

It seems ridiculous when people think of migrating to planets in order to sprout new colonies and re-accommodate earthlings.
How about introducing population control and spend technological expertise into improving existent and futuristic life on earth?

[CroonsPlays]

The days that life is discovered the world will go through dramatic changes that man is not capable of comprehending, it will surely be an extraordinary event.