NASA’s Cassini spacecraft recently spotted a view of Saturn’s icy moon, Enceladus, which has an ocean hidden beneath its frozen surface. Looking at the stunning image, the tiny moon’s cracked surface might deceive and appear like rivers carved into it, but scientists think that they are just heated spots present in the crust where ice water and gases shoot up from the ocean floor and feed Saturn’s E ring.
There is a possibility of hydrothermal vents which might lead to the ocean floor and might be found at the bottom of some of these cracks.
What is Saturn’s moon- Enceladus?
For all those who don’t know about Saturn’s moon, Enceladus is the sixth biggest in size and the 19th largest in the Solar System. Its surface is coated with pure ice, Enceladus which is one of the most reflective objects in the Solar System.
As it is reflective, Enceladus is cooler than a light-absorbing substance at midday which reaches a temperature of 198 degrees Celsius. Despite it being of tiny size, Enceladus contains a broad spectrum of surface characteristics which range from ancient, extensively cratered areas to new, technologically deformed topography.
Fun Fact: The moon travels at an average speed of 148,000 miles from Saturn in an elliptical orbit. Due to this, the moon always has the same side facing Saturn. This leads to an average temperature of –330- Fo.
Why is Enceladus in the news?
The Enceladus news matters as scientists are on the hunt for life beyond Earth. While Enceladus’s chemistry, vast oceans and internal heat are some of the reasons which make it a compelling target.
In accordance with this, there are reports that scientists recently came up with an idea to look for life on the icy moon using an orbiting space probe, without the need to land on this moon.
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https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMiiAFodHRwczovL3d3dy5maW5hbmNpYWxleHByZXNzLmNvbS9saWZlc3R5bGUvc2NpZW5jZS9uYXNhLXNoYXJlcy1pbWFnZXMtb2Ytc2F0dXJucy1pY3ktbW9vbi1lbmNlbGFkdXMtaGVyZXMtd2h5LWl0LWhpdHMtaGVhZGxpbmVzLzI5NDk0NjQv0gGNAWh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmZpbmFuY2lhbGV4cHJlc3MuY29tL2xpZmVzdHlsZS9zY2llbmNlL25hc2Etc2hhcmVzLWltYWdlcy1vZi1zYXR1cm5zLWljeS1tb29uLWVuY2VsYWR1cy1oZXJlcy13aHktaXQtaGl0cy1oZWFkbGluZXMvMjk0OTQ2NC9saXRlLw?oc=5
2023-01-16 07:12:43Z
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