UW Engage Science: Saturn’s Moon Eruptions, Repairing Muscle Instructions, Laser Cooling Nanomaterials
The following description comes from the event organizer.
Enceladus is a small, icy moon that orbits Saturn. Large eruptions of ice and gas are emitted from cracks in Enceladus’ icy surface, and these eruptions hint at the existence of an ocean hidden beneath the surface. A spacecraft flew through the eruptions to analyze them, and the results of that analysis suggest that the eruptions come from the subsurface ocean, and also that the ocean may have the right chemical ingredients to support life. However, not all components of the erupted material make the journey as easily as others. To fully understand what the eruptions can tell us about the ocean, we need to think about what chemical changes take place during the eruption process, what erupts easily, and what gets left behind.