Moons rather than planets are some of the most intriguing targets when looking for places in our solar system beyond Earth where life might exist. These locations, which range from the icy moons of Jupiter like Europa to Saturn’s moon Enceladus, are hypothesised to harbour liquid water seas beneath substantial ice crusts that might support life. Enceladus may now be habitable, according to recent data, and NASA is planning missions to visit these far-off worlds in search of signs of life.
According to Enceladus research that was published in the PNAS magazine, the water of the moon appears to contain dissolved phosphorous, an essential component for life. It is a component of cell membranes, the production of RNA and DNA, and the bones and teeth in our body. The scientists were able to develop a model of the ocean of Enceladus and how minerals would dissolve in it by analysing data from the Cassini spacecraft.
According to one of the researchers, Christopher Glein of the Southwest Research Institute, “the search for extraterrestrial habitability in the solar system has changed focus, as we now look for the building blocks for life, including organic molecules, ammonia, sulfur-bearing compounds, as well as the chemical energy needed to support life.” Because prior research revealed that phosphorus would be sparse in the water of Enceladus, which would reduce the chances of life there, phosphorus presents an interesting case.
Glein claims that we should return to Enceladus to determine if a habitable ocean is genuinely populated because the most recent research indicates that phosphorus may be relatively abundant there.
One approach would be to fly a spacecraft through the water plumes that erupt from the moon’s surface in order to get that water without having to drill through the thick frozen crust.
The OWLS project’s co-principal investigator and science head, Peter Willis, asked in a statement: “How do you take a sprinkling of ice a billion miles from Earth and determine – in the one chance you’ve got, while everyone on Earth is waiting with bated breath – whether there’s evidence of life?” In order to search for both chemical and biological evidence of life, we decided to construct the most potent instrument set possible.
