Enceladus as a Potential Niche for Methanogens and Estimation of Its Biomass.

ABSTRACT: Enceladus is a potential target for future astrobiological missions. NASA's Cassini spacecraft demonstrated that the Saturnian moon harbors a salty ocean beneath its icy crust and the existence and analysis of the plume suggest water-rock reactions, consistent with the possible presence of hydrothermal vents. Particularly, the plume analysis revealed the presence of molecular hydrogen, which may be used as an energy source by microorganisms ( e.g., methanogens). This could support the possibility that populations of methanogens could establish in such environments if they exist on Enceladus. We took a macroscale approximation using ecological niche modeling to evaluate whether conditions suitable for methanogenic archaea on Earth are expected in Enceladus. In addition, we employed a new ap

SUBMITTER: Tenelanda-Osorio LI 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8624164 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature