ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Carolyn Porco - Planetary scientist
As the leader of the Imaging Team on the Cassini mission to Saturn, Carolyn Porco interprets and shares the pictures coming back from this fascinating planet, its rings and its moons.

Why you should listen

Planetary scientist Carolyn Porco studies and interprets the photos from NASA space missions like the renowned Voyager mission to the outer solar system in the 1980s and the Cassini-Huygens mission to Saturn. She leads a team of scientists from the US and Europe that has been analyzing the images Cassini has sent back since it left Earth in 1997. At Saturn, they have found new phenomena everywhere they've turned their cameras … in the planet’s atmosphere, within its rings and on the surfaces of its many moons. And they've produced spectacular images and animations of these marvels in the process.

Back in the early-1980s, while still working on her doctorate, Porco was drafted onto the Voyager imaging team to assist in crunching the mountains of data coming back from Voyager’s fly-by of Saturn. Her work on the planet's rings and their relation to its moons cemented her connection with Saturn. After Voyager had flown by Neptune and was nearing conclusion, she worked together with Carl Sagan in planning Voyager’s celebrated Pale Blue Dot picture of Earth.

Her ongoing work at the Cassini Imaging Central Laboratory for Operations (CICLOPs) has two goals: to process, interpret and archive Cassini’s images for other scientists, and to make sure the images -- in all their breathtaking poetry and mystery and sheer Save-Image-As-Desktop awesomeness -- connect with the general public. She is an advocate for the exploration and understanding of planetary space, and her frequent talks (as well as her "Captain's Log" memos on the CICLOPS website) speak to everyone, scientist and nonscientist alike. Her advocacy extends to Hollywood, where she was the character consultant on the 1997 movie “Contact,” and a consultant on the 2009 Paramount Pictures re-boot of “Star Trek.” In 2012, she was named one the 25 most influential people in space by TIME magazine.

Finally, in a twist on the Pale Blue Dot theme, it was she who conceived the idea to invite the people of the world to smile while Cassini imaged the Earth on July 19, 2013 in an event called “The Day the Earth Smiled.”

For more information: 

Solar System Portrait: Earth as 'Pale Blue Dot'

BBC: Saturn snapped as Earth smiled

The Atlantic: The Carl Sagan of Our Time Reprises the 'Pale Blue Dot' Photo of Earth

The Day the Earth Smiled: Image

Library of Congress: Portraits of the Solar System: Talking with Carolyn Porco About Carl Sagan  

More profile about the speaker
Carolyn Porco | Speaker | TED.com
TED2009

Carolyn Porco: Could a Saturn moon harbor life?

Carolyn Porco: Kan det finnes liv på en av Saturns måner?

Filmed:
1,054,733 views

Carolyn Porco deler oppsiktsvekkende funn fra romsonden Cassinis siste forbipassering av en av Saturns måner, Enceladus. Prøver hentet fra månens is-geysirer tyder på at et hav under overflateisen kan inneholde liv.
- Planetary scientist
As the leader of the Imaging Team on the Cassini mission to Saturn, Carolyn Porco interprets and shares the pictures coming back from this fascinating planet, its rings and its moons. Full bio

Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.

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Two yearsår agosiden here at TEDTED
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Her på TED, for to år siden,
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I reportedrapportert that we had discoveredoppdaget
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rapporterte jeg at vi hadde funnet
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at SaturnSaturn, with the CassiniCassini SpacecraftRomskip,
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med romsonden Cassini, ved Saturn,
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an anomalouslyanomalously warmvarm and geologicallygeologisk activeaktiv regionregion
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en unormalt varm og geologisk aktiv region
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at the southernsør- tipTips of the smallliten SaturnineSaturnine moonmåne
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på sydpolen til den lille Saturn-månen
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EnceladusEnceladus, seensett here.
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Enceladus, vist her.
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This regionregion seensett here for the first time
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Denne regionen ble sett for første gang
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in the CassiniCassini imagebilde takentatt in 2005. This is the southsør polarpolar regionregion,
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på bilder tatt av Cassini i 2005. Dette er sydpol-regionen.
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with the famousberømt tiger-stripeTiger-stripe fracturesfrakturer crossingkryssing the southsør polestang.
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Med de berømte tigerstripene som krysser sydpolen.
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And seensett just recentlynylig in latesent 2008,
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Og sett sist ganske nylig i 2008,
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here is that regionregion again,
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her er den regionen igjen,
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now halfhalv in darknessmørke because the southernsør- hemispherehalvkule
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nå halvveis i mørke fordi den sydlige halvkule
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is experiencingopplever the onsetutbruddet of AugustAugust
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opplever begynnelsen av august
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and eventuallyetter hvert wintervinter.
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og etterhvert vinter.
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And I alsoogså reportedrapportert that we'dvi vil madelaget this mind-blowinghalsbrekk discoveryoppdagelse --
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Og jeg rapporterte også at vi hadde gjort et helt utrolig funn --
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this once-in-a-lifetimegang discoveryoppdagelse
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denne en-gang-i-livet oppdagelsen
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of toweringruvende jetsjets
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av enorme jetstrømmer
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eruptingutbrudd from those fracturesfrakturer at the southsør polestang,
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som brøt ut av sprekkene ved sypolen,
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consistingbestående of tinyliten watervann iceis crystalskrystaller
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og består av små vannkrystaller
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accompaniedledsaget by watervann vapordamp
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sammen med vanndamp
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and simpleenkel organicorganisk compoundsforbindelsene like carbonkarbon dioxidedioksid and methanemetan.
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og enkle organiske stoffer som karbondioksid og metan.
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And at that time two yearsår agosiden
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Og på den tiden for to år siden
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I mentionednevnt that we were speculatingspekulere
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nevnte jeg at vi spekulerte i
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that these jetsjets mightkanskje in factfaktum be geysersgeysirer,
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at disse jetstrømmene faktisk kunne være geysirer,
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and eruptingutbrudd from pocketslommer
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som brøt ut fra lommer
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or chamberskammer of liquidvæske watervann underneathunder the surfaceflate,
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eller vannkammer under overflaten.
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but we weren'tvar ikke really sure.
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Men vi var ikke helt sikre.
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HoweverMen, the implicationsimplikasjoner of those resultsresultater --
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Men implikasjonene av oppdagelsen
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of a possiblemulig environmentmiljø withininnenfor this moonmåne
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av et mulig miljø på denne månen
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that could supportBrukerstøtte prebioticprebiotiske chemistrykjemi,
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som kunne opprettholde organisk næringsstoff,
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and perhapskanskje life itselfseg selv --
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og kanskje liv i seg selv,
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were so excitingspennende that, in the interveningintervenere two yearsår,
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var så spennende at i de påfølgende to årene
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we have focusedfokusert more on EnceladusEnceladus.
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har vi fokusert mer og mer på Enceladus.
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We'veVi har flownflydd the CassiniCassini SpacecraftRomskip
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Vi har flydd Cassini romsonden
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by this moonmåne now severalflere timesganger,
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forbi denne månen flere ganger nå.
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flyingflying closernærmere and deeperdypere into these jetsjets,
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Passert nærmere og dypere inn i disse jetstrømmene,
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into the densertettere regionsregionene of these jetsjets,
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inn i de tettere regionene av disse jetstrømmene,
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so that now we have come away with some
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slik at vi nå har noen
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very precisenøyaktig compositionalkompositoriske measurementsmålinger.
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meget presise målinger av stoffene.
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And we have foundfunnet
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Og vi har funnet
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that the organicorganisk compoundsforbindelsene comingkommer from this moonmåne
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at de organiske stoffene som kommer fra denne månen
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are in factfaktum more complexkomplekse than we previouslytidligere reportedrapportert.
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faktisk er mer komplekse enn vi tidligere rapporterte.
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While they're not aminoamino acidssyrer,
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De er ikke aminosyrer,
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we're now findingfunn things like
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men vi finner ting som
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propanepropan and benzenebenzen,
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propan og benzen,
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hydrogenhydrogen cyanidecyanid, and formaldehydeformaldehyd.
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hydrogencyanid og formaldehyd.
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And the tinyliten watervann crystalskrystaller here
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Og de små frosne vannkrystallene her
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now look for all the worldverden
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ser virkelig ut som
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like they are frozenfrossen dropletsdråper of saltysalt watervann,
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om de er frosne dråper av saltvann.
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whichhvilken is a discoveryoppdagelse that suggestsantyder
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Som er en oppdagelse som foreslår
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that not only do the jetsjets come from
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at ikke bare kommer disse jetstrømmene fra
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pocketslommer of liquidvæske watervann,
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vannlommer,
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but that that liquidvæske watervann is in contactkontakt with rockstein.
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men at vannet er i kontakt med stein.
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And that is a circumstanceforholdet
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Og det er en omstendighet
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that could supplyforsyning the chemicalkjemisk energyenergi
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som kunne tilføre den kjemiske energien
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and the chemicalkjemisk compoundsforbindelsene neededbehov for to sustainopprettholde life.
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og de kjemiske stoffene som trengs for å opprettholde liv.
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So we are very encouragedoppmuntret by these resultsresultater.
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Så vi er blitt veldig motivert av disse funnene.
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And we are much more confidentSelvsikker now than we were two yearsår agosiden
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Og vi er mye mer sikre nå, enn vi var for to år siden
02:43
that we mightkanskje indeedfaktisk
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på at vi faktisk har
02:45
have on this moonmåne, underunder the southsør polestang,
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på denne månen, under sydpolen,
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an environmentmiljø or a zonesone that is hospitablegjestfri to livingliving organismsorganismer.
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et miljø eller en sone som er gjestmild for levende organismer.
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WhetherOm or not there are livingliving organismsorganismer there, of coursekurs,
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Hvorvidt det er levende organismer der, eller ikke,
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is an entirelyfullstendig differentannerledes mattersaken.
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er selvfølgelig en helt annen sak.
02:57
And that will have to awaitventer the arrivalankomst,
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Og det må vente til vi ankommer
02:59
back at EnceladusEnceladus,
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Enceladus
03:02
of the spacecraftsspacecrafts, hopefullyforhåpentligvis some time in the nearnær futureframtid,
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med romfarkoster, forhåpentligvis en gang i nær framtid,
03:05
specificallynærmere bestemt equippedutstyrt to addressadresse that particularbestemt questionspørsmål.
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som er spesialdesignet for å kunne svare oss på det spesielle spørsmålet.
03:09
But in the meantimemellomtiden I inviteinvitere you to imagineForestill deg the day
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I mellomtiden inviterer jeg dere til å se for dere dagen
03:12
when we mightkanskje journeyreise to the SaturnineSaturnine systemsystem,
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da vi reiser til det Saturnianske systemet,
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and visitbesøk the EnceladusEnceladus interplanetaryinterplanetariske geyserGeysir parkparkere,
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og besøker den interplanetariske geysir-parken på Enceladus,
03:19
just because we can.
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rett og slett fordi vi kan.
03:21
Thank you.
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Takk.
03:23
(ApplauseApplaus)
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(Applaus)
Translated by Martin Hassel
Reviewed by Joachim Grønhaug

▲Back to top

ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Carolyn Porco - Planetary scientist
As the leader of the Imaging Team on the Cassini mission to Saturn, Carolyn Porco interprets and shares the pictures coming back from this fascinating planet, its rings and its moons.

Why you should listen

Planetary scientist Carolyn Porco studies and interprets the photos from NASA space missions like the renowned Voyager mission to the outer solar system in the 1980s and the Cassini-Huygens mission to Saturn. She leads a team of scientists from the US and Europe that has been analyzing the images Cassini has sent back since it left Earth in 1997. At Saturn, they have found new phenomena everywhere they've turned their cameras … in the planet’s atmosphere, within its rings and on the surfaces of its many moons. And they've produced spectacular images and animations of these marvels in the process.

Back in the early-1980s, while still working on her doctorate, Porco was drafted onto the Voyager imaging team to assist in crunching the mountains of data coming back from Voyager’s fly-by of Saturn. Her work on the planet's rings and their relation to its moons cemented her connection with Saturn. After Voyager had flown by Neptune and was nearing conclusion, she worked together with Carl Sagan in planning Voyager’s celebrated Pale Blue Dot picture of Earth.

Her ongoing work at the Cassini Imaging Central Laboratory for Operations (CICLOPs) has two goals: to process, interpret and archive Cassini’s images for other scientists, and to make sure the images -- in all their breathtaking poetry and mystery and sheer Save-Image-As-Desktop awesomeness -- connect with the general public. She is an advocate for the exploration and understanding of planetary space, and her frequent talks (as well as her "Captain's Log" memos on the CICLOPS website) speak to everyone, scientist and nonscientist alike. Her advocacy extends to Hollywood, where she was the character consultant on the 1997 movie “Contact,” and a consultant on the 2009 Paramount Pictures re-boot of “Star Trek.” In 2012, she was named one the 25 most influential people in space by TIME magazine.

Finally, in a twist on the Pale Blue Dot theme, it was she who conceived the idea to invite the people of the world to smile while Cassini imaged the Earth on July 19, 2013 in an event called “The Day the Earth Smiled.”

For more information: 

Solar System Portrait: Earth as 'Pale Blue Dot'

BBC: Saturn snapped as Earth smiled

The Atlantic: The Carl Sagan of Our Time Reprises the 'Pale Blue Dot' Photo of Earth

The Day the Earth Smiled: Image

Library of Congress: Portraits of the Solar System: Talking with Carolyn Porco About Carl Sagan  

More profile about the speaker
Carolyn Porco | Speaker | TED.com
THE ORIGINAL VIDEO ON TED.COM