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Returning Samples from Enceladus for Life Detection

MacKenzie, Shannon M.; Davila, Alfonso F.; Neveu, Marc +7 more

Evidence suggests that Saturn's icy moon Enceladus has a subsurface ocean that sources plumes of water vapor and ice vented to space from its south pole. In situ analyses of this material by the Cassini spacecraft have shown that the ocean contains key ingredients for life (elements H, C, N, O and possibly S; simple and complex organic compounds; …