Astronomers have identified ice volcanoes on the unfairly-labeled dwarf planet Pluto, leading to the possibility of a subsurface ocean that could harbor life forms, the New York Times reports.
Scientists say that two mountains on Pluto’s surface, Wright Mons and Piccard Mons, show signs of ice flows around their bases. Whereas the Earth have molten lava flowing out of volcanoes, ice can have a similar flow when ejected in supercold environs. The flow patterns show Pluto was cryovolcanically active in the relative recent past.
The finding also indicates that Pluto has a hot, molten core because volcanoes need molten material to power an eruption. It also gives hope that the ice formed after the eruption of water, which could be in liquid form under a surface crust. Scientists believe that liquid water is one of the necessary ingredients for life, which could exist subsurface.