Extraterrestrial

Strongest ever evidence of alien life discovered on nearby exoplanet

By T.K. Randall
April 17, 2025

Image: James Webb Space Telescope
Credit: NASA/dima_zel/NOIRLab / CC BY 4.0 (adapted) The discovery of extraterrestrial life on a planet other than our own would undoubtedly be one of the most groundbreaking finds in human history - an achievement that could change how we see ourselves and force us to take a long, hard look at our place in the cosmos.

Now scientists believe that they have discovered the strongest evidence yet of alien life on an extrasolar world known as K2-18 b, which is situated 124 light-years away.

Observations using the James Webb Space Telescope have identified two chemicals - dimethyl sulfide (DMS) and dimethyl disulfide (DMDS) - in its atmosphere.

This is important because these two chemicals are typically only known to be produced by life.

While the discovery is extremely exciting, it doesn't quite represent conclusive proof of alien life - though it has been hailed as the strongest sign yet that this alien world has the potential for life.K2-18 b itself is around nine times as massive as the Earth and 2.6 times as large.

It orbits in the habitable zone of a red dwarf star which is around half the size of the Sun.

"This is the strongest evidence to date for biological activity beyond the solar system," said astrophysicist Prof Nikku Madhusudhan of the University of Cambridge.

"We are very cautious. We have to question ourselves both on whether the signal is real and what it means."

"Decades from now, we may look back at this point in time and recognize it was when the living universe came within reach. This could be the tipping point, where suddenly the fundamental question of whether we're alone in the universe is one we're capable of answering."

Source: The Guardian

Tags: Alien, Extraterrestrial