NASA on Thursday announced that it has discovered one of Saturn's moons could sustain life. The tiny moon, called Enceladus, has "almost all of the ingredients that you need to support life as we know it on Earth," project scientist Linda Spilker said.
The revelation that prompted the announcement was that Enceladus is home to an underground saltwater ocean, which hints at active energy sources similar to the Earth's undersea vents. On Earth, seawater reacts with "hot upwelling rocks that are rich in iron and magnesium," BBC explains, resulting in a release of hydrogen — one of the elements necessary to sustain life. Scientists believe a similar reaction is occurring in the water beneath Enceladus' surface.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
5 cartoons about the TACO tradeCartoons Political cartoonists take on America's tariffs, Vladimir Putin waiting for taco Tuesday, and a new presidential seal
-
A city of culture in the high AndesThe Week Recommends Cuenca is a must-visit for those keen to see the 'real Ecuador'
-
The Chagos Islands: Starmer's 'lousy deal'Talking Point The PM's adherence to 'legalism' has given Mauritius a 'gift from British taxpayers'
-
Starving Gazans overrun US-backed food aid hubspeed read Israeli troops fired warning shots at the Palestinians
-
Israel's Western allies pull back amid Gaza escalationspeed read Britain and the EU are reconsidering allegiance with Israel as the Gaza siege continues
-
Trump drops ceasefire demand after Putin callspeed read Following a phone call with Russia's president, Trump backed off an earlier demand that Putin agree to an immediate ceasefire with Ukraine
-
Pro-EU centrist beats Trump acolyte in Romania votespeed read The mayor of Bucharest, Nicusor Dan, defeated hard-right nationalist George Simion in the race for Romania's presidency
-
Kurdish PKK militia to disband for Turkey talksspeed read The Kurdistan Workers' Party will disarm after four decades of armed conflict with Turkey, putting an end to 'one of the longest insurgencies in the Middle East'
-
US, China agree to lower tariffs for 90 daysspeed read US tariffs will fall to 30% from 145%, while China will cut its tax on US imports to 10% from 125%
-
India strikes Pakistan as tensions mount in Kashmirspeed read Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif called it an 'act of war'
-
Israel approves plan to take over Gaza indefinitelyspeed read Benjamin Netanyahu says the country is 'on the eve of a forceful entry'
