In a groundbreaking discovery, scientists using NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope have found the strongest signs yet that there might be life on a planet outside our solar system.
The planet, called K2-18 b, orbits a small, dim star about 124 light-years away from Earth in the constellation Leo. It’s much bigger than Earth — about 8.6 times its mass — and is located in the “habitable zone,” where conditions might allow liquid water to exist.
What makes this discovery exciting is that researchers detected two gases in K2-18 b’s atmosphere — dimethyl sulfide (DMS) and dimethyl disulfide (DMDS). On Earth, these gases are mainly produced by tiny ocean organisms like algae, meaning they are usually linked to life.
However, scientists are being careful. They’re not saying they’ve discovered alien life — only that they’ve found possible signs of it. These gases could be biosignatures, or chemical traces of biological activity.
“This is a game-changer,” said Dr. Nikku Madhusudhan, the lead researcher from the University of Cambridge. “We’ve shown it’s possible to detect signs of life on planets outside our solar system with current technology.”
K2-18 b is what scientists call a “hycean world” — a planet that may be covered in a deep ocean and surrounded by a hydrogen-rich atmosphere. These kinds of planets could support simple life forms like microbes.
The presence of DMS or DMDS was detected at very high levels — thousands of times higher than what’s found in Earth’s atmosphere. Scientists say this makes it hard to explain without involving some kind of biological activity.
Still, more studies are needed. Researchers want to repeat the observations and look into whether something non-biological (abiotic) could be producing these gases.
“This is an exciting step forward, but we need to be cautious,” said another scientist not involved in the study. “We’re not ready to say we’ve found life just yet.”
This discovery adds to a growing list of exciting finds by the James Webb Space Telescope, which is helping us better understand distant worlds and bringing us closer to answering a big question: Are we alone in the universe?