Crucial ingredients for life found on Saturn moon

The best evidence yet for alien life has been discovered on one of Saturn’s moon.

Scientists say organic molecules launched into space from deep-sea vents on Enceladus show that it has the basic requirements for Earth-like life.

The NASA spacecraft Cassini recorded the material as it flew over the moon just before it plunged to its death in the Saturn atmosphere.

A team of international scientists were “blown away” after examining the NASA data, reports the Independent.

It revealed complex organic chemistry – a required ingredient for life – happens on Enceladus.

Dr Christopher Glein, of the Southwest Research Institute in Texas, said the distant moon is the only body apart from Earth to “simultaneously satisfy all of the basic requirements for life as we know it”.

“We are, yet again, blown away by Enceladus.

“Previously we’d only identified the simplest organic molecules containing a few carbon atoms, but even that was very intriguing.”

The new findings are the result of years of gleaned data taken by Cassini as it flew near Saturn’s moons.

The study was reported in the journal Science.