Finding E.T. Here On Earth

Saturn's moon Enceladus. (Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute) When aliens arrive in the movies, they typically come from distant galaxies. Extraterrestrial life, however, could exist right here in our own solar system, nestled in briny oceans under the surface of icy worlds close to home. Multiple moons orbiting Jupiter and Saturn have proven to hold, or once held, liquid oceans. Of these, Saturn's moon Enceladus has emerged as the most promising candidate for life in recent years, thanks to the discovery of hydrothermal plumes gushing from beneath its frozen surface. The vents these plumes emanate from could foster an an ideal environment for the emergence of organic life, pumping in crucial compounds and energy. To find out if that might be the case, Laurie Barge travels to other worlds in her lab—here on Earth, of course.