The thermal effect of the Enceladus moon and the Taurid meteorite shower.

“How we think hydrothermal activity works on Enceladus, based on data from the NASA/ESA Cassini-Huygens mission. Credit: ESA”  (ScitechDaily, NASA Finds Hidden Heat on Saturn’s Icy Moon Enceladus, Hinting at Life)

Researchers found a new heat source in Saturn’s icy moon Enceladus. That heat can form in water flows on that icy moon. Low gravity and a quite close distance to the giant planet Saturn can cause whirls in that moon’s water layers. That means tidal forces can keep the ocean under Enceladus’ icy shell in liquid form. On that moon, tidal forces have a much stronger effect than on Earth. 

The moon’s low gravity means that water can stay liquid at much lower temperatures than on Earth.  The low gravity on Enceladus keeps water molecules at a greater distance. From each other. There are models that suggest Enceladus could be a harbour. For some kind of lifeforms. There could be living organisms in that water. The heat source on that distant moon can be friction in that icy water. 

“This year’s “Halloween fireballs” are stunning to watch, but scientists say they may carry a warning from space. Credit: Shutterstock” (ScitechDaily, The Stunning Meteor Shower That Has Scientists Worried)

Meteorite showers are one of the things that should worry people. 

Meteorite showers form when large groups of small meteorites fall into the Earth's atmosphere. If those meteorites involve lots of iron, they travel to the poles. And that forms a beautiful sight. But the problem is that. Those meteorites or meteoroids can hit satellites. That thing can cause a situation. Where a large number of satellites will be broken. When a meteoroid hits the satellite, it has the same effect as bullets.

The difference between a meteoroid and a meteorite is that a meteoroid is a small meteorite that burns in the atmosphere. The stone that hits the ground is called a meteorite. Meteorite showers can cover the space from the ground-based observations. That causes a situation. Where meteorite showers can harm deep-sky surveillance. But. Their biggest problem is that those meteoroids can form an ionized gas layer, which causes problems for radar-based surveillance. And if those meteoroids impact many satellites, that can knock out systems like GPS and Starlink. 

https://scitechdaily.com/nasa-finds-hidden-heat-on-saturns-icy-moon-enceladus-hinting-at-life/

https://scitechdaily.com/the-stunning-meteor-shower-that-has-scientists-worried/

 

A hidden planet was revealed in 20 light years from Earth.

"HD 20794 d, (82 G. Eridani d ) a planet six times the mass of Earth, orbits a Sun-like star just 20 light-years away. Its presence was confirmed after years of meticulous analysis, overcoming the limits of detection technology."(ScitechDaily, A Hidden Planet Revealed: Could This Be One of Our Best Chances at Finding Alien Life?)

"Although it lies in the habitable zone, its elliptical orbit presents challenges in determining its true potential for life. Future telescopes may soon provide deeper insights into its atmosphere, making this one of the most exciting exoplanet discoveries in recent years."(ScitechDaily, A Hidden Planet Revealed: Could This Be One of Our Best Chances at Finding Alien Life?)

The new planet is interesting. Because it orbits stars similar to our sun in 20 light years away. That planet is in the habitable zone. And that can be the best candidate for extraterrestrial lifeform. The planet HD 20794 d is not in the habitable zone all the time.  That planet's trajectory is very elliptic and it orbits around its sun HD 20794, known also as 82 Eridani. That star is quite similar G-type star as our sun. The star is a little bit colder than our sun, and the exoplanet HD 20794 d has a mass six times Earth's. That means that big exoplanets can have habitable moons. The exoplanet HD 20794 d is the thing that should make us think about life in the universe in new ways. 

"The orbit of HD 20794 d places it within the habitable zone of the HD 20794 system, meaning it is at the right distance from its star to sustain liquid water on its surface. Credit: Gabriel Pérez Díaz, SMM (IAC)" (ScitechDaily, A Hidden Planet Revealed: Could This Be One of Our Best Chances at Finding Alien Life?)

An artist's impression of a global subsurface ocean of liquid water on Saturn's Enceladus moon. (Wikipedia, Enceladus). 

"Size comparison between Enceladus (lower left), the Moon (upper left) and Earth) (Wikipedia, Enceladus).

Can icy oceans on icy moons host life?  

Things like cells are a thing that makes life on Earth possible. The cells and DNA can form millions of different types of organisms. Woods, bears, and fishes live on the same planet with sea anemones and bacteria. Those creatures have only one thing that combines them. They all have a similar cell structure. And they all live on the same planet. Same way we cannot close out the possibility that some other planets can support life that is totally different than life on Earth. Cells and DNA double-helix molecules don't mean that lifeforms on distant planets are similar to life on Earth. 

"A model of Titan's internal structure showing ice-six layer" (Wikipedia, Titan)

"Size comparison: Titan (lower left) with the Moon and Earth (top and right)" (Wikipedia, Titan)

Once astronomer Carl Sagan introduced an idea about theoretical living bubbles that live in the gas giant's atmosphere. Similar living balls can also hover. In the low-gravity moons like Europa and Enceladus moon oceans. Those living balls are only one early hypothesis of what the lifeforms can look like. We know that there is an ocean under the icy shells of the Enceladus, Europa, and other big moons. There is also mysterious methane emission on Satrurn's Titan moon. 

That moon is so cold that there should not be any lifeforms. That moon should be dry without any water. But now researchers noticed. That there are hydrocarbon oceans on the moon's surface. And there is quite a big possibility. Under the Titan moon's shell, there is a subsurface water ocean. Another interesting question is how the moon whose surface gravity is 0,138g can host an atmosphere that is 1,45 times denser than Earth. The Moon's gravity is 0.1654. 

There is the possibility that the longer distance from the Sun makes the Titan atmosphere possible. But Saturn's gravity is the thing that should pull that nitrogen off around Titan. The remarkable thing is that there is no free oxygen in Titan's atmosphere. But Enceladus has no atmosphere at all. The weak gravity on Titan and Enceladus can explain the liquid water under the Titan and Enceladus shells. But the methane emission is one of the most interesting things in the world. 

https://scitechdaily.com/a-hidden-planet-revealed-could-this-be-one-of-our-best-chances-at-finding-alien-life/

https://scitechdaily.com/beneath-the-ice-titans-six-mile-deep-methane-crust-could-rewrite-planetary-science/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/82_G._Eridani

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/82_G._Eridani_d

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enceladus

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moon

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Titan_(moon)

The mystery of Titan's dense atmosphere.

"SwRI is studying how Saturn’s largest moon maintains its thick atmosphere. Scientists think Titan’s core is covered by several layers of ice and a subsurface liquid ocean. New experiments indicate that nitrogen and methane gases produced by the organic materials at its core could seep up to the surface, continuously replenishing Titan’s atmosphere. Credit: Southwest Research Institute" (ScitechDaily, Scientists Unlock the Secrets of Titan’s Dense Atmosphere)

Titan is quite a small object in our solar system.  It's the largest moon of Saturn. That is the second-largest moon, and only Jupiter's Ganymede is bigger. The dense atmosphere of that moon is one of the biggest mysteries in our solar system. The main gas is nitrogen in its atmosphere is nitrogen, but there is also a small dose of methane. The atmosphere pressure on Titan's surface is 146.7 kPa (1.45 atm). And that makes this thing interesting. The mass of Titan is only  0.0225 Earth, and its escaping velocity is only 2.641 km/s. Escaping velocity from Earth is 11.186 km/s. 

Can Titan be like a magnetic monopole? If the other pole of that moon's magnetic field is weak its magnetic field can unite over the weaker pole. And that forms a magnetic monopolar field around it. 

Can this effect form because Titan's magnetic field is so special? Can the other pole of Titan's moon's magnetic field be very weak? That can make Titan act like a magnetic monopole.  If that is true the Titan moon can pull ions against its surface. In that model, Titan can have a normal nucleus like all other planets. But if there is a large subsurface ocean.

"Artistic rendering of hydrothermal vents on the seafloor of the Saturnian moon Enceladus. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech, edited" (ScitechDaily, Could Saturn’s Moon Enceladus Be Hiding Clues to Alien Life?)

It's possible that some magnetic minerals or compounds that can look like a stick can turn their standing position against Titan's nucleus. And if as an example N pole in those sticks is outside that turns Titan into the monopolar structure. 

There can be some kind of tunneling force or electromagnetic phenomenon that pulls those gases against the Titan surface. The dust storms can form static electricity that can pull ionized gas to the surface. The idea is if there is some kind of EM field and some molecules and atoms are ionized that pulls them to the surface. In the widest theories, Titan is a magnetic monopole that can pull ions and anions over it. Or its nucleus can behave like a magnetic monopole if another pole on that strange moon is very weak. 

And the question is how the Titan can maintain its dense atmosphere. Another mystery is the methane gas that the Titan atmosphere involves 1,4%. The question is the source of that gas. The Titan structure might involve a subsurface ocean. And even if Titan's surface is totally without water. It's possible. The subsurface ocean can involve water. That can make Titan one of the promising harbors of life. 

An interesting detail is the thing that makes Titan more interesting is that there is suspicion that also another Saturn moon Enceladus can harbor some primitive lifeforms. Similar suspicions are introduced for other large moons, where there are subsurface oceans. Water is a good protector against the cosmic rays and that's why those icy moons are interesting. 

https://scitechdaily.com/could-saturns-moon-enceladus-be-hiding-clues-to-alien-life/

https://scitechdaily.com/scientists-unlock-the-secrets-of-titans-dense-atmosphere/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earth

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enceladus

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Standard_atmosphere_(unit)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Titan_(moon)