{"id":46439,"date":"2023-06-15T07:53:07","date_gmt":"2023-06-15T07:53:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.skyatnightmagazine.com\/?p=119426"},"modified":"2023-06-15T08:32:30","modified_gmt":"2023-06-15T08:32:30","slug":"cassini-mission-finds-key-ingredient-for-life-at-saturns-moon-enceladus","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/rss_feed\/cassini-mission-finds-key-ingredient-for-life-at-saturns-moon-enceladus\/","title":{"rendered":"Cassini mission finds key ingredient for life at Saturn\u2019s moon Enceladus"},"content":{"rendered":"

Data from the retired NASA mission has revealed phosphorus, a building block for DNA, in the icy moon’s subsurface ocean. <\/p>

By Iain Todd\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Thursday, 15 June 2023 at 12:00 am<\/p>

\n\n

Data from NASA\u2019s Cassini mission<\/a> has revealed a key building block for life in the subsurface ocean of Saturn\u2019s icy moon Enceladus.<\/p>\n

Enceladus is known for its energetic geysers, as water from the ocean beneath the moon\u2019s icy crust erupts and spews out material into space.<\/p>\n

Phosphorus, an essential chemical ingredient for life as we know it, has now been discovered inside salt-rich ice grains ejected by one of Enceladus\u2019s plumes.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\""This\"<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>
This image captured by the Cassini spacecraft shows plumes of water ice erupting from the surface of Enceladus. Credit: NASA\/JPL-Caltech\/SSI<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

The Cassini mission studied Saturn and its icy moons from 2004 \u2013 2017, before making a controlled descent into Saturn\u2019s atmosphere, where the spacecraft was purposely destroyed<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The reason it couldn\u2019t be left in orbit around Saturn is because some of Saturn\u2019s major moons \u2013 like Titan and Enceladus \u2013 are considered to have prime conditions that could support the emergence of life.<\/p>\n

Not wanting to risk contamination, NASA scientists decided to end the mission by destroying the Cassini spacecraft.<\/p>\n

One of the key bodies in the search for signs of life within our Solar System is Enceladus, due to the liquid water that exists beneath its frozen exterior.<\/p>\n

As we know water is a key ingredient for life on Earth, Enceladus\u2019s liquid subsurface ocean makes it a prime target.<\/p>\n

During its mission, the Cassini spacecraft made several dives through plumes<\/a> erupting from deep inside Enceladus and found the moon\u2019s ice grains contain a wealth of minerals and organic compounds that are associated with life as we know it.<\/p>\n

\""An\"<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>
An illustration of NASA\u2019s Cassini spacecraft diving through plumes erupting on Saturn\u2019s moon Enceladus from the ocean below its icy crust. Will exploration of these oceans reveal evidence of life?Credit: NASA\/JPL-Caltech<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

Studies of Enceladus\u2019s ice grains had previously revealed sodium, potassium, chlorine and carbonate-containing compounds.<\/a><\/p>\n

Now, scientists studying Cassini data have discovered phosphorus, which is a building block for DNA and is found in the bones of mammals, cell membranes and plankton in our oceans.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe previously found that Enceladus\u2019 ocean is rich in a variety of organic compounds,\u201d says Frank Postberg of the Freie Universit\u00e4t Berlin<\/a>, Germany, who led the new study, which has been published in the journal Nature.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut now, this new result reveals the clear chemical signature of substantial amounts of phosphorus salts inside icy particles ejected into space by the small moon\u2019s plume. It\u2019s the first time this essential element has been discovered in an ocean beyond Earth.\u201d<\/p>\n

Finding the ingredients for life<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\""A\"<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>
A 2006 observation of Saturn\u2019s E ring by the Cassini spacecraft. The E ring is fed with icy particles via plumes erupting from the subsurface ocean of Saturn\u2019s icy moon Enceladus. The moon\u2019s shadow is seen as a dark dot within the ring. Credit: NASA\/JPL\/Space Science Institute<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

To make the discovery, the team studied Cassini data: specifically that collected by the spacecraft\u2019s Cosmic Dust Analyzer instrument when it sampled particles of ice from Enceladus found in Saturn\u2019s E ring.<\/p>\n

They found high concentrations of sodium phosphates \u2013 molecules of chemically bound sodium, oxygen, hydrogen, and phosphorus \u2013 inside some ice grains.<\/p>\n

Lab tests found that Enceladus\u2019s ocean contains phosphorus in concentrations of at least 100 times that of Earth\u2019s oceans.<\/p>\n

\""Plumes\"<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>
Plumes of water ice and vapour spray from the south polar region of Saturn\u2019s moon Enceladus. Credit: NASA\/JPL\/Space Science Institute<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

\u201cHigh phosphate concentrations are a result of interactions between carbonate-rich liquid water and rocky minerals on Enceladus\u2019 ocean floor and may also occur on a number of other ocean worlds,\u201d says co-investigator Christopher Glein of the Southwest Research Institute<\/a> in San Antonio, Texas.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis key ingredient could be abundant enough to potentially support life in Enceladus\u2019 ocean; this is a stunning discovery for astrobiology.\u201d<\/p>\n

However, the study authors are keen for caution when interpreting these results.<\/p>\n

\u201cHaving the ingredients is necessary, but they may not be sufficient for an extraterrestrial environment to host life,\u201d says Glein.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhether life could have originated in Enceladus\u2019 ocean remains an open question.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more about this story at jpl.nasa.gov\/news\/nasa-cassini-data-reveals-building-block-for-life-in-enceladus-ocean<\/a>.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Read the full paper at www.nature.com\/articles\/s41586-023-05987-9<\/a><\/strong><\/em><\/p> <\/body><\/html>\n

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