spacetoday.net: Scientists confirm presence of subsurface ocean on Enceladus

Posted: Tue, Apr 8, 2014, 6:51 AM ET (1051 GMT)
Enceladus seen by Cassini in July 2005 (NASA/JPL)

Planetary scientists using data from NASA's Cassini spacecraft have confirmed that a moon of Saturn has an ocean of liquid water beneath its icy surface. Researchers measured the Doppler shift in radio signals from the Cassini spacecraft as it flew past the moon Enceladus to map the moon's gravity field and, from that, discern its interior structure. Those data indicate Enceladus may have a ocean of liquid water under part of its surface, a region 30 to 40 kilometers below the surface and up to 10 kilometers deep. Scientists had previously proposed the presence of a subsurface liquid water ocean because of the plumes of water vapor seen gushing from the moon's surface. The findings suggest that Enceladus may have the necessary basic conditions of liquid water, energy, and organics needed to support life.