Another Possibility for Life
The discovery of liquid water on yet another moon in the solar system potentially gives researchers another option in the search for life. The ocean has probably existed for most of Dione’s existence, giving any potential organisms plenty of time to establish themselves. The researchers are most interested in the region where the water meets the moon’s rocky core, where chemical interactions between the two could provide some of the molecules critical for life to begin.
Dione now joins Titan, Enceladus, Europa, Ganymede and Pluto as the solar system’s wettest places — beyond Earth. And, given that we seem to find new bodies of liquid water every time we take a closer look at our solar system, more are likely to come.
This post originally appeared on Discover.