NASA study finds key ingredient for life at Saturn's moon

A new study using data from NASA's Cassini mission has found evidence of a key ingredient for life and a powerful source of chemical energy to fuel it on Saturn's icy moon Enceladus, reported Xinhua.

The study, published Thursday in Nature Astronomy, found strong confirmation of hydrogen cyanide, a molecule that is key to the origin of life.

The researchers also uncovered evidence that the ocean, which is hiding below the moon's icy outer shell and supplies the plume, holds a powerful source of chemical energy. Unidentified until now, the energy source is in the form of several organic compounds, some of which, on Earth, serve as fuel for organisms.

The findings indicate there may be much more chemical energy inside this tiny moon than previously thought. The more energy available, the more likely that life might proliferate and be sustained, according to NASA.