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.
-
4 tips for keeping your resolutionsThe Week Recommends New Year's resolutions seem made to be broken, but with a few adjustments, you can give yourself a shot at sticking with it
-
'His disdain for international rules could eviscerate the laws of war'Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Getty Images and Shutterstock merge into a picture powerhouse to combat AIThe Explainer The $3.7 billion deal is one of the largest in the industry's history
-
Ukraine captures first North Korean soldiersSpeed Read Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy posted videos of the men captured in Russia's Kursk region
-
Lebanon selects president after 2-year impasseSpeed Read The country's parliament elected Gen. Joseph Aoun as its next leader
-
US accuses Sudan rebels of genocide, sanctions chiefSpeed Read Sudan has been engaged in a bloody civil war that erupted in 2023
-
Ukraine goes on offense in Russia's Kursk regionSpeed Read A top adviser to President Zelenskyy said "the Russians are getting what they deserve"
-
Ukraine cuts off Russian gas pipeline to EuropeSpeed Read Ukraine has halted the transport of Russian gas to Europe after a key deal with Moscow expired
-
Top Russian general killed in Moscow blastSpeed Read A remote-triggered bomb killed Lt. Gen. Igor Kirillov, the head of Russia's Nuclear, Biological and Chemical Defense
-
Why Assad fell so fastThe Explainer The newly liberated Syria is in an incredibly precarious position, but it's too soon to succumb to defeatist gloom
-
NATO chief urges Europe to arm against RussiaSpeed Read Mark Rutte said Putin wants to 'wipe Ukraine off the map' and might come for other parts of Europe next
