Saturn's moon Enceladus

Extra-terrestrial life more likely after NASA discovery about Saturn's moon Enceladus

The probe has detected traces of molecular hydrogen (H2) in icy plumes spewing from fissures on the surface of Enceladus.

The discovery, reported today in the journal Science, indicates the Saturnian moon's oceans contain conditions critical to fuelling life.

Study co-author Hunter Waite, the program director of mass spectrometry studies at the South West Research Institute, said the implications of finding hydrogen were "pretty amazing".