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Scientists Investigate the Possibility of Life in the Clouds of Venus

2024-07-11 10:59:41.334000

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has made an exciting discovery, finding a new potentially habitable earth-size exoplanet. The discovery was made by NASA's Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) [9e689f6b]. Masayuki Kuzuhara, a project assistant professor at the Tokyo Astrobiology Center, announced the discovery, stating that they have found 'the nearest, transiting, temperate, Earth-size world located to date.' The exoplanet, named Gliese 12 b, is estimated to be about 1.1 times the size of Earth and is located 40 light-years away from Earth [5812d94a].

Gliese 12 b orbits a red dwarf star and is situated in the habitable zone, also known as the 'Goldilocks Zone,' where conditions may be favorable for liquid water to exist on the planet's surface. This makes Gliese 12 b a prime candidate for further study regarding its potential habitability [9e689f6b].

Michael McElwain, a research astrophysicist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, confirmed the discovery and emphasized the need for more examples like Gliese 12 b to better understand the diversity of atmospheres and evolutionary outcomes for these exoplanets [9e689f6b].

Efforts are underway to study Gliese 12 b's atmosphere and determine its habitability. The James Webb Space Telescope, set to launch soon, will play a crucial role in gathering data on the planet's mass and atmosphere, providing valuable insights into its potential for supporting life [4905a6be], [5812d94a].

In addition to the discovery of Gliese 12 b, the James Webb Space Telescope has also made another significant finding. It has detected an Earth-like planet named SPECULOOS-3b, located 55 light-years away from Earth. SPECULOOS-3b orbits an ultra-cool red dwarf star and has a rocky composition similar in size to Jupiter. However, the high-energy radiation emitted by its star and its tidally locked nature make it unlikely to be habitable [e01af5ba].

Further research will be conducted using the James Webb Space Telescope to gather more information about SPECULOOS-3b and its surroundings. Scientists hope to study the planet's atmosphere and potentially uncover more details about its composition and conditions [e01af5ba].

These discoveries mark significant milestones in the exploration of potential life beyond Earth, providing valuable insights into the diversity and characteristics of exoplanets [9e689f6b], [e01af5ba].

The James Webb Space Telescope, launched in 2021, is being used to study the atmospheres of exoplanets and has already detected water, carbon dioxide, methane, and more on other worlds. Scientists hope to use the telescope to answer five key questions about exoplanets: 1) Why do some rocky planets have atmospheres while others don't? 2) What is exoplanet geology like? 3) What are rocky exoplanets made of? 4) What are sub-Neptunes made of? 5) How do gas planets form? The telescope's observations could provide insights into the composition, geology, and formation of exoplanets [ac48c21f].

Scientists have discovered an exoplanet called HD 189733 b, which is larger than Jupiter and located 65 light years from Earth. The planet is known for its extreme weather conditions, including raining molten glass at temperatures that reach speeds of up to 5,000 mph. Recently, the James Webb Space Telescope detected hydrogen sulfide in the atmosphere of HD 189733 b, giving the planet a rotten egg smell. This discovery is significant because hydrogen sulfide is a vital molecule for building more complex molecules and understanding how different types of planets form. The finding opens up possibilities for detecting this molecule on other planets and gaining a better understanding of planetary composition [ad423ad3].

A new study has found that Arrokoth, a snowman-shaped space rock located in the outskirts of our solar system beyond Pluto, is covered in sugars similar to those found in human cells. The sugars include glucose and ribose, which are fundamental building blocks of RNA, the molecule found in cells of humans and most of Earth's lifeforms. Although Arrokoth is too cold to support life as we know it, the findings suggest that smaller comets could have transported sugar molecules required for the origin of life from Arrokoth to early Earth billions of years ago. The research was led by Dr. Cornelia Meinert of CNRS-University Côte d'Azur in France [9f653599].

The surface of Venus has high atmospheric pressure and temperatures of 465°C. However, the conditions in the atmosphere above an altitude of 50 kilometers are amenable to life. Extremophiles on Earth live in acidic conditions, similar to the acid clouds in the Venusian atmosphere. The water in the Venusian atmosphere is insufficient to support life. In 2020, researchers discovered phosphine on Venus, a molecule associated with life on Earth, although its detection is controversial. Some scientists suggest that microbes may live in the atmosphere of Venus, and looking for biosignatures such as ammonia or hydrogen sulfide could reveal life in the clouds. Volcanic eruptions and lightning on Venus inject energy into the clouds, which could be used by microbes. Further research is needed to confirm the biological origin of phosphine gas. NASA's DaVinci+, Veritas, and ESA's EnVision missions have the potential to confirm the existence of life in the clouds of Venus. [75044a1f]

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