File photo: Saturn's ocean-bearing moon Enceladus taken in visible light with the Cassini spacecraft narrow-angle camera on Nov. 27, 2016. NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute/Handout via REUTERS
Scientists have found the "building blocks" for life on Saturn's moon Enceladus, discovering complex organic molecules, according to a study published this week.
The study, published in the peer-reviewed journal Nature, is based off data from NASA's Cassini spacecraft, prior to it plunging into Saturn's atmosphere and ending its mission on Sept. 15, 2017.
“It is the first ever detection of complex organics coming from an extraterrestrial water-world,” said Frank Postberg, the lead author of the study, in a statement on the European Space Agency's website.
SATURN'S ICY MOON ENCELADUS, A POSSIBLE HOME FOR LIFE
"The data constrain the macromolecular structure of organics detected in the ice grains and suggest the presence of a thin organic-rich film on top of the oceanic water table, where organic nucleation cores generated by the bursting of bubbles allow the probing of Enceladus’ organic inventory in enhanced concentrations," the study reads.
