Cassini Spacecraft Examines Saturn’s Moon With Salty Ocean

In 2005, NASA made history by making the first-ever flyby over Enceladus, Saturn's icy moon, as it made a detailed survey of the satellite. While the event was exciting as a potential exploration in and of itself, the magnetometer on the spacecraft noticed something odd. It is the most reflective object in the Solar System, leading scientists to believe that there is something that kicked off the ice dust on its surface.

Back then, scientists presumed it to be an airless ball of ice. However, as noted by Knowridge, it seems that there is something similar to a comet that is actively emitting gas. This does not make particular sense in an inactive world. After all, how could the moon actively replenish gases it was breathing into space? Thus, NASA started the hunt for clues regarding Enceladus' story.

It was noted that, thanks to a trail of "scientific breadcrumbs," Cassini found that the planet's moon harbored an ocean of salty water under its crust, with a possible existence of hydrothermal vents on its sea floor. This led scientists to believe that this moon -- like many other icy moons -- could potentially have the ingredients necessary for sustaining life.

Linda Spilker, Cassini's project scientist at NASA shared, "Half the excitement of doing science is that you sometimes find yourself going in a totally different direction than you expected, which can lead to amazing discoveries." This statement is not only limited to their discovery on Enceladus but also regarding another moon, Titan, which Clarksville Online noted to has been discovered by the spacecraft to have liquid methane seas.

Cassini will begin its grand finale orbit around Saturn by April. It is expected to plunge through the gap between the planet's rings, and even the planet itself, up until its final plunge into its surface on Sep. 15.