Enceladus | Universe Today

Caption: Geysers on Enceladus. Credit: NASA, JPL, Space Science Institute

One of the most exciting but unexpected discoveries of the Cassini mission is seeing the activity taking place on Saturn's small moon Enceladus. Between the active geysers, the unusual "tiger stripes" and the surprisingly young surface near the moon's south pole, Enceladus has surprised scientists with almost all the images and data the gathered by the spacecraft. But is the moon always active, or are we just in the right place at the right time, lucky to be catching it during an active phase? A recent paper outlines a model in which the kind of geologic eruptions now visible on Enceladus only occur every billion years or so.
Read more…

Filed under: Enceladus, Saturn | 9 Comments »

A liquid plume is spewing from Saturn's icy moon Enceladus — but is it coming from heated ice on the surface, or a liquid ocean underneath?

Analysis of the plume's chemistry, detailed in the Cassini (CICLOPS) image above and reported in Nature this week, may put the debate to rest.

Read more…

Filed under: Astronomy, Enceladus | 7 Comments »

Two papers in the journal Nature this week come down on opposite sides of the question about whether Saturn's moon Enceladus contains a salty, liquid ocean.

One research team, from Europe, says an enormous plume of water spurting in giant jets from the moon's south pole is fed by a salty ocean. The other group, led out of the University of Colorado at Boulder, contends that the supposed geysers don't have enough sodium to come from an ocean.  The truth could have implications for the search for extraterrestrial life, as well as our understanding of how planetary moons are formed.

Read more…

Filed under: Astrobiology, Enceladus | Comments Off

Looking to go somewhere far-flung and exotic? Now is the time to book your excursion, and the Cassini spacecraft has several flyby tours of the moons Titan and Enceladus scheduled for the next few months. Major tour operators say the cost of long-haul flights and summer holidays prices are at an all time low. But with Cassini, you can travel for FREE! just by following the along with Universe Today and the Cassini website. Thrill with some of the closest flybys ever of the mystery moon Titan, and delight in explorations of the geyser plumes of Enceladus. As a special bonus, if you book today, you can experience Saturn's solar equinox, as in August the sun crosses from the southern hemisphere to the north. Wonderful worlds are beckoning – come away starting June 6 with Cassini! It's a worry free vacation. See below for available tour dates! Destination fees do not apply.
Read more…

Filed under: Enceladus, Saturn, Titan | 5 Comments »

Planetary scientists say the geysers shooting from Saturn's moon Enceladus are likely to come from a subsurface sea of liquid water. During the Cassini spacecraft's fly-through of the geyser's plume on October 9, 2008, the instruments on board were able to measure the molecular weight of the chemicals in the ice. Detected were traces of sodium in the form of salt and sodium bicarbonate. The chemicals would have originated in the rocky core of Enceladus, so to reach a plume they must have leached from the core via liquid water.
Read more…

Filed under: Enceladus | 6 Comments »