The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), the most powerful telescope ever launched, is set to begin a crucial observation mission in the hunt for extraterrestrial life.
As reported by The Times, the telescope will focus on a distant planet orbiting a red dwarf star, K2-18b, located 124 light-years away.
K2-18b has captured the attention of scientists due to its potential to harbour life. It's believed to be an ocean-covered world with a size exceeding Earth's by about 2.6 times.
The key element scientists are looking for is dimethyl sulphide (DMS), a gas with a fascinating characteristic. According to NASA, on Earth, DMS is "only produced by life," primarily by marine phytoplankton.
The presence of DMS in K2-18b's atmosphere would be a significant discovery, although Dr Nikku Madhusudhan, the study's lead astrophysicist from Cambridge, cautions against jumping to conclusions. While preliminary data from JWST suggests a high probability (over 50%) of DMS presence, further analysis is needed. The telescope will dedicate eight hours of observation this Friday, followed by months of data processing before a definitive answer can be reached.
The lack of a known natural, geological, or chemical process for generating DMS in the absence of life adds weight to the excitement. However, even if confirmed, the sheer distance of K2-18b presents a technological hurdle. Travelling at the speed of the Voyager spacecraft (38,000 mph), it would take a probe a staggering 2.2 million years to reach the planet.
Despite the immense distance, the JWST's ability to analyse the chemical composition of a planet's atmosphere through spectral analysis of starlight filtering through its clouds offers a new window into the potential for life beyond Earth. This mission holds the potential to answer the age-old question of whether we are truly alone in the universe.
The upcoming observations also aim to clarify the existence of methane and carbon dioxide in K2-18b's atmosphere, potentially resolving the "missing methane problem" that has puzzled scientists for over a decade. While theoretical work on non-biological sources for gas continues, definitive conclusions are expected within the next four to six months.
