← World catalog MOON / 03
Enceladus
Saturn
A small ocean moon whose south-polar plumes expose water, salts, organics, silica, and chemical energy to space.
AEvidence classDirectly observed or repeatedly measured
- Mean radius
- 252.1 km
- Surface gravity
- 0.113 m/s²
- Representative temperature
- about −201 °C mean surface
- Surface pressure
- No substantial atmosphere
Scientific assessment
Cassini directly sampled plume material; the combination of a global ocean and hydrothermal indicators makes Enceladus an exceptional sampling target.
- Liquid-water evidence
- Global ocean plus directly sampled water-rich plumes
- Principal constraint
- Ocean conditions inferred through plume chemistry
- Principal mission context
- Cassini archive; future plume-sampling concepts
Comparative evidence matrix
A transparent research-priority index, not a probability of life. It combines solvent evidence, usable energy, chemistry, environmental stability, evidence maturity, and sampling access.