Huge breakthrough in search for Alien Life as NASA detects gas on exoplanet associated with life

www.dailymail.co.uk... -life.html

Scientists have made an exciting and potentially ground-breaking discovery in the search for alien life, after detecting signs of a gas produced only by living organisms on a distant water planet.

K2-18 b, which is more than eight times the size of Earth and 120 light-years away from us, sits within the habitable zone of its cool dwarf star in the Leo constellation.

It is thought to be a 'Hycean' world — a relatively new class of exoplanet possessing key ingredients for alien species because of their hydrogen-rich atmospheres and oceans of water.

But it is the presence of something else that has got astronomers even more excited.

A gas 'uniquely associated with life' when found on Earth has been discovered in the atmosphere of K2-18 b, which is known as a 'super Earth' because it is bigger than our planet but smaller than Neptune.

The compound dimethyl sulphide (DMS) – a complex molecule made up of carbon, hydrogen and sulphur atoms – was detected alongside two carbon-carrying gases, leaving researchers feeling a 'a mix of shock and excitement and disbelief

On Earth, this is only produced by life,' NASA said.

'The bulk of the DMS in Earth's atmosphere is emitted from phytoplankton in marine environments.'

Despite the excitement, scientists have stressed that more observations by the James Webb Space Telescope will be needed to confirm the presence of DMS

The planet is very likely hosting large amounts of liguid water as there are strong signatures for the presence of carbon dioxide and methane in its atmosphere, as the matter of fact large amounts of both gases, without any trace of ammonia, and according to scientists there observations are consistent with a hydrogen dominated atmosphere of an ocean dominated planet characterised by mild temperatures.

The very intriguing point is the additional presence of DMS in its atmosphere which is associated only with microbial marine life, such as phytoplankton, here on Earth. This could be the first biosignature (at least officially) but even the large amounts of carbon dioxide and methane could indicate the presence of life on the planet as we speak.


www.universetoday.com... ater-ocean/#:~:text=Hycean%20planets%20are%20thought%20to,being%20stripped%20of%20its%20atmosphere.

K2-18b the name of the planet which is 120 light years from Earth, located within the habitable zone of a red dwarf, and with mass approximately 9 times the mass of Earth and radius 3 times the radius of Earth.

The mass of our planet is 5.972×10^24 kg
The radius of our planet is 6,371Km

a reply to: AlienBorg

Exiting news , hopefully more observations will yield further evidence of dimethyl sulphide in the atmosphere of K2-18 b but as it stands it's the closest we've come to finding a candidate for a habitable world out in the void.

Lead author of the team who made the discovery , Prof Nikku Madhusudhan of Cambridge University , explains their results.

originally posted by: gortex
a reply to: AlienBorg

Exiting news , hopefully more observations will yield further evidence of dimethyl sulphide in the atmosphere of K2-18 b but as it stands it's the closest we've come to finding a candidate for a habitable world out in the void.

Lead author of the team who made the discovery , Prof Nikku Madhusudhan of Cambridge University , explains their results.

That is definitely the most exciting news in terms of possible biosignatures on other planets. But that's at an official level and through University research. We know (and I know well) that the most crucial and important research isn't usually conducted in Universities and Public Institutions and it's not shared either.

That's some very exciting news if it pans out but we all know how that goes. Plus those guys coming from a high gravity world would make great construction workers.

a reply to: gortex

Love listening to scientists speak, so humble and reasonable.

He speaks so carefully and puts tiny disclosures into everything, without even really thinking about it. We don't know this, but it points towards this. The data is such and such, and we're thinking it might be this, but we need more evidence. This is not done now because we are smarter than everyone, but because for the first time in history we have the tools to notice it.

Humility in every word. Pleasure to listen to.

Only a fool deals in absolutes and thinks they know everything.

a reply to: AlienBorg

As I understand it this is their discovery , institutions like Cambridge University book time on JWST to look at what they want to look at then publish their results , their findings are shared with NASA but I doubt they are censoring anything , if anything a discovery of Bio-signatures on another World made by Webb justifies the expense of getting it up there and the spend on its eventual successor.

I'm still awaiting Trappist 1d data , hopefully we'll get that this year and the results will be even more exciting.

originally posted by: gortex
a reply to: AlienBorg

As I understand it this is their discovery , institutions like Cambridge University book time on JWST to look at what they want to look at then publish their results , their findings are shared with NASA but I doubt they are censoring anything , if anything a discovery of Bio-signatures on another World made by Webb justifies the expense of getting it up there and the spend on its eventual successor.

I'm still awaiting Trappist 1d data , hopefully we'll get that this year and the results will be even more exciting.

Universities tend not to censor information when it comes to physics and astronomy. Generally speaking these fields are ok to work at. But NASA and the Military that employ many scientists do censor information and they're not obliged to share anything with the public.

So, the answer to the great question of "are we alone?" comes down to "Smell My Farts".

Mask mandates ready....

a reply to: AlienBorg



Ticking some of the boxes.

a reply to: AlienBorg

Marine phytoplankton produce DMS - it gives the sea its unique smell.

Interesting how nature works - add an oxygen atom double bonded to the sulfur atom and you get DMSO (dimethylsulfoxide). DMSO, which used to be called horse liniment, has been used as a treatment for arthritis and other types of ailments. A drop on the skin and you taste it almost immediately - tastes like garlic. We use it in the lab as a solvent. Not recommended as a medical treatment.

Space travel isn’t real, alien life doesn’t exist, exoplanets are fake and this ridiculous nonsensical pseudo-science is all part of an ideologically driven activist agenda to get grants and funding to keep pretend self-identified so called scientists employed and to indoctrinate children into believing our species won’t forever die on this rock.

The truth will come out. Save the children from these lies and ban all media that even hints outer space is a thing.

a reply to: AdifferentOpinion

"The truth will come out. Save the children from these lies and ban all media that even hints outer space is a thing."

Yes. Let's all go back to the Middle Ages.

Deny Ignorance? Where do we even start?!!!!!!!!

a reply to: AdifferentOpinion

a reply to: AdifferentOpinion

Oh. So that was sarcasm?

Could have given a clue?

Difficult to tell, otherwise.

originally posted by: AdifferentOpinion
Space travel isn’t real, alien life doesn’t exist, exoplanets are fake and this ridiculous nonsensical pseudo-science is all part of an ideologically driven activist agenda to get grants and funding to keep pretend self-identified so called scientists employed and to indoctrinate children into believing our species won’t forever die on this rock.

The truth will come out. Save the children from these lies and ban all media that even hints outer space is a thing.

a reply to: AdifferentOpinion

I guess we didn't go to the Moon or Mars either?

The OP will get it.

It's called giving one a taste of their own medicine and just how ridiculous it is to authoritatively state opinion as fact.