In a press release earlier today, NASA declared that Jupiter's moon Europa, and Saturn's moon Enceladus, may contain the basic elements considered necessary for life as we know it to exist.

"Europa and Enceladus are thought to have an ocean of liquid water beneath their surface in contact with mineral-rich rock, and may have the three ingredients needed for life as we know it: liquid water, essential chemical elements for biological processes, and sources of energy that could be used by living things."

"NASA's Cassini mission has revealed Enceladus as an active world of icy geysers," said the press release. "Recent research suggests it may have hydrothermal activity on its ocean floor, an environment potentially suitable for living organisms."

NASA scientists used the Cassini spacecraft's mass spectrometer to detect an abundance of hydrogen molecules in water plumes rising from fractures in Enceladus' ice-covered surface. This hydrogen is believed to come from a hydrothermal reaction between the moon's ocean and its rocky core that draws hydrogen out of the minerals present. They believe that this process could also point to the formation of methane, which is considered another crucial chemical for life.