Silicon Valley Astronomy Lectures

← Silicon Valley Astronomy Lectures1 Dec 2025 · 1 h 14 min

The Search for Life on Saturn’s Intriguing Moon Enceladus

The Search for Life on Saturn’s Intriguing Moon Enceladus1 Dec 20251 h 14 min

Dr. Alfonso Davila (NASA Ames Research Center) Nov. 24, 2025 In 2005, NASA's Cassini spacecraft made a groundbreaking discovery—it found massive plumes of ice and gas erupting from the south pole of Enceladus, a small but geologically-active moon of Saturn. These plumes are now believed to originate from a subsurface ocean of liquid water beneath the moon’s icy crust, with conditions compatible with life, as we know it. The talk focuses on our current understanding of Enceladus' plume and sub...