"The researchers analyzed data from the Cassini probe, which launched in 1997 and studied Saturn and its moons for years until its destruction in 2017. For Enceladus, Cassini gathered data from ice fragments forcefully ejected from the moon's subsurface ocean up into space. Enceladus is one of 274 bodies so far discovered in Saturn's gravitational pull. It measures about 500 kilometers in diameter, making it the planet's sixth-largest satellite."
"This material is believed to come from a saline water chamber beneath the moon's icy crust that is connected to its rocky core. It's possible that chemical reactions are taking place down there, under high pressure and heat. Until now, most chemical analyses of ice from Enceladus were of particles deposited in Saturn's E ring. But during a high-speed flyby of the moon in 2008, Cassini was fortunate enough to directly sample freshly ejected fragments from a cryovolcano."
Cassini directly sampled ice and vapor ejected from Enceladus's cryovolcano plumes and detected several organic compounds not previously recorded at the moon. Identified molecules include intermediates that could contribute to synthesis of more complex organics. Plume material likely originates from a saline chamber beneath an icy crust that is connected to a rocky core, where heat and pressure may drive active chemical reactions. Plumes extend thousands of kilometers and feed Saturn's E ring. Enceladus measures about 500 kilometers in diameter and has cryovolcanic activity concentrated at its south pole.
Read at WIRED
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