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An AI's
rendering of the exoplanet WASP-80b |
JWST has recently discovered the
presence of methane in the exoplanet, WASP-80b. This discovery could be pivotal
in finding the presence of life in other exoplanets in the foreseeable future
with JWST.
According to the research which was published in the journal Nature. The NASA-led
team reported to have discovered methane in the atmosphere of WASP-80b. WASP-80b,
a planet is about half the mass of Jupiter and is about as big as our gas giant
orbiting a star even smaller than our sun.
WASP-80b takes about 3 days to
orbit its star, meaning a year is about 3 days long on this planet with an
average temperature of 1025F (552C). Certainly not a place where we will find
life. Therefore it is pretty clear in their findings that none of the methane
discovered in this planet was produced by life but rather by chemical reactions
in the atmosphere. The thick atmosphere of the planets prevents methane from
escaping from the atmosphere. This is similar to how methane is trapped in some
heavier planets in our solar system like Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune.
Whereas in a light planet like Earth
methane can only be produced and held inside a living cell. Therefore, the
detection of methane in a light exoplanet could be significant evidence for the
presence of some biological life. On a planet like WASP-80 b, this could also
provide valuable information about its formation and evolution.
How to find methane in an
exoplanet?
The methane was detected by spectroscopy of the light from its star WASP-80 while it passed through the atmosphere of the planet during its transit. This was further made possible due to the abnormally large size of the planet compared to the size of its star, which is smaller than our sun.
JWST has recently discovered the
presence of methane in the exoplanet, WASP-80b. This discovery could be pivotal
in finding the presence of life in other exoplanets in the foreseeable future
with JWST.
According to the research which was published in the journal Nature. The NASA-led
team reported to have discovered methane in the atmosphere of WASP-80b. WASP-80b,
a planet is about half the mass of Jupiter and is about as big as our gas giant
orbiting a star even smaller than our sun.
WASP-80b takes about 3 days to
orbit its star, meaning a year is about 3 days long on this planet with an
average temperature of 1025F (552C). Certainly not a place where we will find
life. Therefore it is pretty clear in their findings that none of the methane
discovered in this planet was produced by life but rather by chemical reactions
in the atmosphere. The thick atmosphere of the planets prevents methane from
escaping from the atmosphere. This is similar to how methane is trapped in some
heavier planets in our solar system like Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune.
Whereas in a light planet like Earth
methane can only be produced and held inside a living cell. Therefore, the
detection of methane in a light exoplanet could be significant evidence for the
presence of some biological life. On a planet like WASP-80 b, this could also
provide valuable information about its formation and evolution.
How to find methane in an
exoplanet?
The methane was detected by
spectroscopy of the light from its star WASP-80 while it passed through the
atmosphere of the planet during its transit. This was further made possible due
to the abnormally large size of the planet compared to the size of its star,
which is smaller than our sun.
Are there any other planets
where methane was detected?
Earlier this year NASA reported that the
JWST had made similar discoveries of methane in an exoplanet K2-18 b though the
findings have yet to be verified with the data from JWST’s MIRi (Mid-Infrared
instrument). The K2-18 b is an exoplanet revolving around a red dwarf K2-18. It
is more than 8 times as massive as the Earth and is about twice the size of the
Earth and it is not out of the scale by a very long stretch. Hence the presence
of methane in K2-18 b could be a good sign of life or biological activity but
there are still some doubts.
The discovery could also provide a
valuable experience in finding methane and other similar compounds in lighter
exoplanets like the ones orbiting the red dwarf called the TRAPPIST-1. It could
be used to find life although it is a bit difficult to find methane in a
lighter exoplanet as the thinner atmosphere is very difficult to probe through
transit spectroscopy.
What was the technology used in this finding?
JWST is the first telescope that
is equipped to find methane with its powerful infrared instrument called NIRcam
(Near Infrared camera). While previous telescopes like Hubble & Spitzers were
only capable of finding a brown dwarf which is only possible because a brown
dwarf was able to produce its infrared signature.
Conclusion
This discovery of methane in the
exoplanet called WASP-80b tells us about the formation and evolution of the
planet. Moreover, the importance does not lie in the finding itself but rather
in the timing of these findings since methane has not been found much time
before. These results may not suggest the presence of life on this particular
planet. Still, it could be used as an experience to find methane in a lighter
earth-like planet which could further provide valuable proof of life outside
the solar system, which could give us a solution for the Fermi paradox.
There is more research needs to be
done as the results are awaiting an additional assessment from the JWST’s MIRi
and NIRcam instruments. These will help us to revisit the findings from a
different angle as the observation can be done in a different wavelength in the
future. Which would lead to better analysis.