This is the strongest evidence we've ever had of biological activity outside our solar system.
Using the James Webb Space Telescope, a team led by the University of Cambridge found chemical traces of dimethyl sulfide (DMS) or dimethyl disulfide (DMDS) in the atmosphere of the exoplanet K2-18b — both gases that, on Earth, are only produced by life, mainly microscopic marine organisms.
Although this doesn’t yet confirm alien life, the detection marks a major leap forward in the search for biosignatures. The results carry a three-sigma level of statistical significance, suggesting only a 0.3% chance they occurred randomly, and further observations could push this into the realm of scientific certainty.
K2-18b is a Hycean world — a type of planet theorized to be covered by oceans and cloaked in a hydrogen-rich atmosphere — and sits 124 light-years away in the habitable zone of its star. This planet had already revealed carbon-based molecules like methane and carbon dioxide in earlier observations, and now the new detection of DMS and DMDS — at levels thousands of times higher than Earth’s — strengthens the case for possible life. However, scientists caution that unknown chemical processes could be responsible, and more data is needed. Still, this discovery may represent a pivotal moment in humanity’s quest to answer the age-old question: are we alone in the universe?
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https://www.cam.ac.uk/.../strongest-hints-of-biological...
