On April 18th, an international astronomical research team announced on the 17th that they have discovered the “strongest evidence” of possible life activity outside the solar system in the atmosphere of exoplanet K2-18b, located about 124 light-years away from Earth. However, further observations are needed to rule out other non biological explanations. In the latest study published in the Astrophysical Journal Communications on the 17th, a research team led by the University of Cambridge in the UK used instruments on the James Webb Space Telescope to analyze the atmosphere of K2-18b planet, which is 124 light-years away from Earth. The results showed that in the atmosphere of this Leo planet, which has a mass about 8.6 times that of Earth and a volume about 2.6 times that of Earth, there exist “chemical fingerprints” of dimethyl sulfide (DMS) and dimethyl disulfide (DMDS). On Earth, these two sulfides can only be produced through life activities and mainly come from marine phytoplankton and other sources. According to a press release from the University of Cambridge, although these molecules in K2-18b’s atmosphere may have originated from unknown chemical processes, these results are the strongest evidence yet for the possible existence of life on exoplanets outside the solar system.
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