MSGID: 1:317/3 648a93ef   
   PID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
   TID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
    Key building block for life found at Saturn's moon Enceladus    
    SwRI helped find evidence for phosphorus in the liquid water ocean   
   beneath the moon's icy surface    
      
     Date:   
         June 14, 2023   
     Source:   
         Southwest Research Institute   
     Summary:   
         The search for extraterrestrial life in our solar system just got   
         more exciting. A team of scientists has discovered new evidence   
         that the subsurface ocean of Saturn's moon Enceladus contains a key   
         building block for life. The team directly detected phosphorus in   
         the form of phosphates originating from the moon's ice-covered   
         global ocean using data from NASA's Cassini mission. Cassini   
         explored Saturn and its system of rings and moons for over 13 years.   
      
      
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   FULL STORY   
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   The search for extraterrestrial life in our solar system just got more   
   exciting. A team of scientists including Southwest Research Institute's   
   Dr.   
      
   Christopher Glein has discovered new evidence that the subsurface ocean   
   of Saturn's moon Enceladus contains a key building block for life. The   
   team directly detected phosphorus in the form of phosphates originating   
   from the moon's ice-covered global ocean using data from NASA's Cassini   
   mission. Cassini explored Saturn and its system of rings and moons for   
   over 13 years.   
      
   "In 2020 (published in 2022), we used geochemical modeling to predict that   
   phosphorus should be abundant in Enceladus' ocean," said Glein, a leading   
   expert in extraterrestrial oceanography. He is a co-author of a paper in   
   the journal Nature describing this research. "Now, we have found abundant   
   phosphorus in plume ice samples spraying out of the subsurface ocean."   
   The Cassini spacecraft discovered Enceladus' subsurface liquid water and   
   analyzed samples in a plume of ice grains and gases erupting into space   
   from cracks in the moon's icy surface. Analysis of a class of salt-rich   
   ice grains by Cassini's Cosmic Dust Analyzer showed the presence of sodium   
   phosphates. The team's observational results, together with laboratory   
   analogue experiments, suggest that phosphorus is readily available in   
   Enceladus' ocean as phosphates.   
      
   Phosphorus in the form of phosphates is vital for all life on Earth. It   
   is essential for the creation of DNA and RNA, energy-carrying molecules,   
   cell membranes, bones and teeth in people and animals, and even the   
   sea's microbiome of plankton. Life as we know it is simply not possible   
   without phosphates.   
      
   "We found phosphate concentrations at least 100 times higher in the moon's   
   plume-forming ocean waters than in Earth's oceans," Glein said. "Using   
   a model to predict the presence of phosphate is one thing, but actually   
   finding the evidence for phosphate is incredibly exciting. This is   
   a stunning result for astrobiology and a major step forward in the   
   search for life beyond Earth."  One of the most profound discoveries   
   in planetary science over the past 25 years is that worlds with oceans   
   beneath a surface layer of ice are common in our solar system. Such   
   worlds include the icy satellites of the giant planets, such as Europa,   
   Titan and Enceladus, as well as more distant bodies like Pluto.   
      
   Worlds like Earth with surface oceans must reside within a narrow range   
   of distances from their host stars to maintain the temperatures that   
   support surface liquid water. Interior ocean worlds, however, can occur   
   over a much wider range of distances, greatly expanding the number of   
   habitable worlds likely to exist across the galaxy.   
      
   "Geochemical experiments and modeling demonstrate that such high phosphate   
   concentrations result from enhanced phosphate mineral solubility,   
   in Enceladus and possibly other icy ocean worlds in the solar system   
   beyond Jupiter," Glein said. "With this finding, the ocean of Enceladus   
   is now known to satisfy what is generally considered to be the strictest   
   requirement for life. The next step is clear -- we need to go back to   
   Enceladus to see if the habitable ocean is actually inhabited."   
       * RELATED_TOPICS   
             o Space_&_Time   
                   # Saturn # Solar_System # Moon # Astronomy # Pluto #   
                   Space_Exploration # Jupiter # Space_Missions   
       * RELATED_TERMS   
             o Titan_(moon) o Saturn's_natural_satellites o Saturn o   
             Phoenix_(spacecraft) o Solar_system o Uranus'_natural_satellites   
             o Neptune's_natural_satellites o Extraterrestrial_life   
      
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   Story Source: Materials provided by Southwest_Research_Institute. Note:   
   Content may be edited for style and length.   
      
      
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   Journal Reference:   
      1. Frank Postberg, Yasuhito Sekine, Fabian Klenner, Christopher   
      R. Glein,   
         Zenghui Zou, Bernd Abel, Kento Furuya, Jon K. Hillier, Nozair   
         Khawaja, Sascha Kempf, Lenz Noelle, Takuya Saito, Juergen Schmidt,   
         Takazo Shibuya, Ralf Srama, Shuya Tan. Detection of phosphates   
         originating from Enceladus's ocean. Nature, 2023; 618 (7965):   
         489 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-023- 05987-9   
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   Link to news story:   
   https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/06/230614220041.htm   
      
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