Global Ocean Suspected on Saturn's Enceladus
Do some surface features on Enceladus roll like a
conveyor belt?
A leading interpretation of
images taken of Saturn's
most explosive moon indicate that they do.
This form of asymmetric
tectonic activity, very unusual on Earth,
likely holds clues to the internal structure of
Enceladus,
which may contain subsurface seas where
life might be able to develop.
Pictured above is a composite of 28 images taken by the robotic
Cassini spacecraft in 2008 just after swooping by the ice-spewing orb.
Inspection of these images show clear
tectonic displacements
where large portions of the surface all appear to
move all in one direction.
On the image right appears one of the most prominent tectonic divides:
Labtayt Sulci,
a canyon about one kilometer deep.
The magnitude of Enceladus' wobble as it orbits Saturn might indicate damping by a globally extending
underground ocean layer.