研究人员在实验室中模拟土卫二海洋环境，发现来自日本深海热液喷口的微生物能够在这些极端条件下存活1。这些甲烷菌通过转化氢气和二氧化碳生成甲烷，即使在pH值达到11的极碱性环境中也能适应1。慕尼黑路德维希-马克西米利安大学地微生物学教授William Orsi表示："如果我们使用我们今天在地球上理解的生命细胞定义，实验告诉我们，如果这种生物或类似的生物在土卫二上，它很可能能够存活"1。研究结果已发表在《科学进展》杂志上1。
土卫二是一颗直径约300英里的土星卫星，被厚重冰层覆盖，其下存在巨大盐水海洋1。这一发现提高了在该卫星上发现生命的可能性1。然而，微生物在本次实验中的存活仅持续数天，长期存活能力仍未确定1。欧洲航天局的L4任务计划于约2042年发射，预计在2050年代抵达土星，届时将进行土卫二登陆探索1。
Researchers have demonstrated that microorganisms from Earth's deep-sea hydrothermal vents can survive under laboratory conditions mimicking the ocean beneath Saturn's moon Enceladus.1 The experiment, conducted by scientists at Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, tested methane-producing microbes that generate methane by converting hydrogen and carbon dioxide.1 Remarkably, these microorganisms remained viable even at a pH level of 11, far exceeding previously known survival limits for such organisms.1 The findings have been published in the journal Science Advances.1
William Orsi, a professor of geomicrobiology at Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, stated: "If we use the definition of living cells as we understand them on Earth today, the experiments tell us that if this organism, or similar ones, were on Enceladus, it could very likely survive."1 The research enhances the possibility of discovering life on this distant moon.1
Enceladus, approximately 300 miles in diameter and covered by ice, harbors a massive subsurface saltwater ocean beneath its frozen crust.1 The European Space Agency's L4 mission is scheduled to launch around 2042 and reach Saturn in the 2050s, during which it will conduct landing exploration of Enceladus.1 However, the current experiment lasted only several days, leaving the long-term survival capacity of such microorganisms under these conditions still unknown.1
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