Enceladus

Enceladus is an icy moon orbiting Saturn.[1]

History

William Herschel discovered Enceladus in 1789.[1] John Herschel proposed the moon's name in an 1847 publication.[1]

Findings

Cassini detected water-rich jets erupting from Enceladus in 2005.[1] Gravity and wobble measurements indicate that a global ocean feeds the jets.[1] The plume contains water vapour, carbon dioxide, methane, salts, and silica.[1] JPL lists a mean radius of 252.10 kilometres for Enceladus.[2] ESA says Enceladus's thin atmosphere may indicate activity within the moon.[3]

Current status

NASA identifies Enceladus as a promising target in the search for potentially habitable worlds.[1]

Sources

  1. Enceladus | NASA Science. Licence: facts-only (Track B), no text or images reused. Attribution: NASA.
  2. Planetary Physical Parameters | NASA JPL. Licence: facts-only (Track B), no text reused. Attribution: NASA/JPL-Caltech.
  3. Cassini-Huygens science highlights | ESA. Licence: facts-only (Track B), no text reused. Attribution: European Space Agency.

Evidence as of 2026-11-01.