Enceladus "Sea" Mystery Deepens

Smivs writes "The BBC reports that an ocean may not be the source of the jets emanating from Saturn's moon Enceladus. Controversial research questions the moon's promise as a target in the search for life beyond Earth. A chemical analysis of Enceladus, led by University of Colorado planetary scientist Nick Schneider, failed to detect sodium, an element scientists say should be present in any body of water that has been in contact with rock for billions of years. Spectral analysis with the Keck Telescope found no sodium in the plumes or in the vapor in orbit around the moon. At stake is whether Saturn's moon could support alien life and is thus a worthy target for a NASA exploratory mission to detect it. Such a mission to Enceladus is one of four currently under review for further development."

Sodium Depletion Due To...

[haakondahl]

...overmining by the Europans. Yes, the sole hyperpower in far solar orbit is exploiting the resources of honest, hard-working, frozen Enceladans. Don't buy Morton Salt.

so

[circletimessquare]

send the probe to enceladus anyways

just put a salt shaker on it

problem solved

sheesh these scientist types and their "problems"

Re:Assumption check, please

[MacDork]

>"If you have a long-lived ocean, it's going to have salt in it,"

Just like Lake Michigan?

Yes, [palomar.edu] just like Lake Michigan.

1 cubic foot of sea water evaporates it yields about 2.2 pounds of salt, but 1 cubic foot of fresh water from Lake Michigan contains only one one-hundredth (0.01) of a pound of salt, or about one sixth of an ounce. Thus, sea water is 220 times saltier than the fresh lake water.

Re:Moderator on Crack

[SL Baur]

Oh thank you, thank you, thank you. I'm soooo glad to have someone reliable and unbiased like Wikipedia to do my thinking for me.

The sad fact of science is that scientific knowledge comes in waves and only advances past a certain point when the main proponent of a previous world model is dead.

Shame on you, the electric universe guys who flame (and mod down here) everyone who does not agree with you. Shame on you wikipedians for being unable to keep your own bias out of wikipedia.

I was inclined to be sympathetic to the electric universe guys just on general principles (magnetism is a huge effect), but no more, thank you. Anyone who has to make an argument by silencing opposition (or apparent opposition) just does not have a leg to stand on, in my opinion.

Oh my god. I've offended both sides. Better moderate me into oblivion so no one else can hear since you can't delete this post.

The chances of anything coming from Enceladus...

[stiller]

At midnight, on the 12th of August, a huge mass of luminous gas erupted from Enceladus and sped towards Earth. Across two hundred million miles of void, invisibly hurtling towards us, came the first of the missiles that were to bring so much calamity to Earth. As I watched, there was another jet of gas. It was another missile, starting on its way.
And that's how it was for the next ten nights. A flare, spurting out from Enceladus. Bright green, drawing a green mist behind it; a beautiful, but somehow disturbing sight. Ogilby, the astronomer, assured me we were in no danger. He was convinced there could be no living thing on that remote, forbidding planet.

Re:How do you know?

[rucs_hack]

ok, that ones there.

I therefore submit the Chewbacca defense and thus win the argument by default :-)

Re:Moderator on Crack

[Anonymous Coward]

"Duly note that the Wiki article is a battleground for supporters, so read it with a heap of salt."

There isn't any salt - that's what TFA was about.