quality:correction, structural:scholar_edition
Potential habitability

Enceladus ejects plumes of salted water laced with grains of silica-rich sand, nitrogen (in ammonia), and organic molecules, including trace amounts of simple hydrocarbons such as methane (CH), propane (C H), acetylene (C H) and formaldehyde (CH O), which are carbon-bearing molecules. This indicates that hydrothermal activity —an energy source— may be at work in Enceladus's subsurface ocean. Models indicate that the large rocky core is porous, allowing water to flow through it, transferring heat and chemicals. It was confirmed by observations and other research. Molecular hydrogen (H), a geochemical source of energy that can be metabolized by methanogen microbes to provide energy for life, could be present if, as models suggest, Enceladus's salty ocean has an alkaline pH from serpentinization of chondritic rock.

The presence of an internal global salty ocean with an aquatic environment supported by global ocean circulation patterns, with an energy source and complex organic compounds in contact with Enceladus's rocky core, may advance the study of astrobiology and the study of potentially habitable environments for microbial extraterrestrial life. Geochemical modeling results concerning not-yet-detected phosphorus indicate the moon meets potential abiogenesis -requirements. However, phosphates have been detected from a cryovolcanic plume detected by Cassini and is discussed in a paper in the June 14, 2023, issue of Nature entitled "Detection of Phosphates Originating From Enceladus's Ocean".

The presence of a wide range of organic compounds and ammonia indicates their source may be similar to the water/rock reactions known to occur on Earth and that are known to support life. Therefore, several robotic missions have been proposed to further explore Enceladus and assess its habitability. Some of the proposed missions are: Journey to Enceladus and Titan (JET), Enceladus Explorer (En-Ex), Enceladus Life Finder (ELF), Life Investigation For Enceladus (LIFE), and Enceladus Life Signatures and Habitability (ELSAH).

In June 2023, astronomers reported that the presence of phosphates on Enceladus has been detected, completing the discovery of all the basic chemical ingredients for life on the moon.

On December 14, 2023, astronomers reported the first time discovery, in the plumes of Enceladus, of hydrogen cyanide, a possible chemical essential for life as we know it, as well as other organic molecules, some of which are yet to be better identified and understood. According to the researchers, "these compounds could potentially support extant microbial communities or drive complex organic synthesis leading to the origin of life."