Word: koharcheck
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...This will be our closest flyby yet," says NASA scientist Candice Hansen-Koharcheck. "We knew that Enceladus was a very interesting target, but we had no idea that we would find the kind of activity that we found - water just spewing out of the south pole...
...moon's plumes emit particles that are 90% water, in vaporized form, and contribute to the large rings around Saturn. "It's like the steam coming out of your kettle," Hansen-Koharcheck says. By analyzing the molecular structure of these particles, scientists hope to determine whether the vapor originates as ice or liquid, and whether that means there could be life in Enceladus's interior, beneath the surface...
...particles. During the July 2005 flyby they were able to collect samples of particles that showed the presence of organic materials including carbon dioxide and methane, which, along with water and energy, are essential to sustain life. For larger carbon compounds, however, the results were less clear. As Hansen-Koharcheck puts it, "The data gets really noisy...
...Hansen-Koharcheck and her colleagues are hopeful about their prospects of better understanding the structure of Enceladus - and what that will mean about the conditions in its interior. "It's one of these fun mysteries," she says. "It all goes back to this question: Could there be life...
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