Astronomers led by the University of Cambridge discovered methane and carbon dioxide in K2-18 b’s atmosphere. The results are “consistent with an ocean-covered surface beneath a hydrogen-rich atmosphere,” the university said. Said.
“This discovery offers a glimpse of a planet unlike any other in our solar system and offers intriguing perspectives about potentially habitable worlds elsewhere in the universe,” the researchers said in a statement on Monday. it was done.
NASA Said The findings, which include “an abundance of methane and carbon dioxide and a dearth of ammonia,” support the hypothesis that the exoplanet may be covered in oceans.
The researchers said they also detected “another weak signal” that could indicate a molecule called dimethyl sulfide, raising the possibility of K2-18 b’s biological activity.On Earth, this molecule is produced only by living organisms and is emitted by phytoplankton in the marine environment, NASA says To tell.
However, the detection of DMS has not yet been confirmed, and the team plans to follow up with further observations from the US Space Agency’s Webb Telescope. Added.
Astronomers noted that the discovery does not necessarily mean the planet can support life. Their size means that their interior may contain a huge mantle of high-pressure ice like Neptune’s, but with a thinner hydrogen-rich atmosphere and sea surface, they It pointed out. Said. And the ocean may be too hot for humans to live in.
This isn’t the first time astronomers have observed signs of water on another planet. Evidence of water vapor has been discovered before. exoplanet It is about the same size as Neptune, which is about 120 light years away.
Still, they described the new discovery as a gateway to further insights into extraterrestrial planets.
NASA says the prospect that K2-18 b could be a “hycean” exoplanet, an oceanic world, is “interesting” and some astronomers believe such a planet could support life on an exoplanet. He said he believes this is a promising environment to look for evidence of.
Nick Madhusudan, an astrophysicist at the Cambridge Institute of Astronomy and lead author of the study, said: “Our findings highlight the importance of considering a wide variety of habitable environments when searching for life elsewhere. “We are emphasizing that,” he said.
In 2015, it was discovered that K2-18 b, which is more than twice the size of Earth, is located in the star’s “habitable zone,” an area that is neither too hot nor too cold for liquid water to exist. It’s been found.
The first insight into the nature of a planet’s atmosphere was NASA’s Hubble Space TelescopeBut the technology of its successor, the Webb telescope, made state-of-the-art detection possible with an expanded wavelength range and “unprecedented sensitivity,” Madhusudan said.
The $10 billion Webb Telescope has peered deep into space and provided new observations of distant galaxies since its launch in December 2021.
“These results are the result of just two observations of K2-18 b, with more observations to come,” said co-author Savas Konstantinou, a researcher at the University of Cambridge. Stated.