NASA: Enceladus also has an icy ocean

It seems that the icy ocean on the satellites of the planets of the solar system is the rule rather than the exception. Now NASA has reported confirmation of the theory that there is an ocean of liquid water on Enceladus, Saturn’s satellite. True, not on the surface, but under the ice. According to agency experts, this ocean is evenly distributed over the entire ice surface of Enceladus. One of the evidence can be considered the existence of hydrothermal emissions.

Confirmation was provided by Cassini, a space probe that arrived at Saturn in 2004, and spent the last decade studying this planet and its satellites. The probe itself was launched in 1997. Researchers used Cassini tools to determine the exact orbit of Enceladus. It turned out that the theoretical orbit is somewhat different from the actual one - Enceladus makes oscillations, which can be explained by the existence of the subglacial ocean.

Enceladus itself is one of the few satellites of the planets of the solar system, on which scientists discovered the release of fluid into the surrounding space. Previously, scientists explained the appearance of such emissions with liquid water lenses, but now it is proved that the water on the satellite of Saturn is a whole ocean.



The project team carefully studied the orbit of Enceladus, calculating the fluctuations of the planetoid. As it turned out, if Enceladus was a completely solid body, the vibrations would not be as significant as it is now. The only factor, according to scientists, that can affect the increase in the amplitude of the oscillations of Enceladus in orbit is a large amount of liquid water under the ice. In fact, we are talking about the existence of a whole ocean that covers the entire planetoid.

Cassini has not yet completed his study of Enceladus. In October, the probe will fly only 49 kilometers from the surface of Saturn’s satellite. In this case, Cassini will try to study the hydrothermal discharge as closely as possible, which will be closest to the probe.

Now in the solar system there are already three objects, where, according to scientists, there is an icy ocean. This is Europe, the satellite of Jupiter, Ganymede, and Enceladus. Moreover, traces of liquid water and water ice were discovered on a large number of other objects in the solar system. In principle, it is easier to name objects where there is no water than to list all the planets and planetoids where there is water.