Potential Signs of Life Discovered on Distant Exoplanet

A team of researchers from the University of Cambridge's Institute of Astronomy has uncovered preliminary evidence suggesting the possibility of life on an exoplanet located approximately 124 light-years away. This discovery builds upon earlier findings from 2019 when the Hubble Space Telescope identified water vapor in the atmosphere of the exoplanet K2-18b, along with subsequent detections of carbon dioxide and methane.

The recent findings indicate the presence of dimethyl sulfide or its variant dimethyl disulfide--gases closely associated with biological activity. On Earth, these gases are produced by a variety of organisms, including plankton, bacteria, plants, and fungi. Their relatively short half-lives suggest that they are continuously generated, hinting at the presence of a biological source.

According to the research team, the estimated concentration of these gases in K2-18b's atmosphere is thousands of times higher than levels found on Earth. If this correlation to life is substantiated, it may indicate that the planet is teeming with life forms. The lead researcher has expressed optimism about confirming this signal within the next one to two years, stating that proof of life on K2-18b could fundamentally alter our understanding of the prevalence of life within the galaxy.

K2-18b, classified as a super-Earth, was first identified in 2015. It possesses a mass nearly nine times that of Earth and a radius approximately 2.4 times larger. The planet completes an orbit around its star, K2-18, located in the constellation Leo, every 32.9 days, in a region considered suitable for hosting life.

Located roughly 124.3 light-years from our planet, K2-18b is currently beyond the reach of human exploration. For context, NASA's Parker Solar Probe, the fastest spacecraft ever built, is projected to reach speeds of up to 700,000 kilometers per hour. At this speed, a journey from Earth to K2-18b would take nearly 192,000 years.