The discovery proves that there may be life beyond our solar system

Is there life beyond our solar system? A team of international astronomers has taken it one step closer to answering this historic question. New research has revealed something that could be an important clue to understanding if there are other unknown planets that may be habitable for future generations.

The team, led by scientists at Queen's University Belfast, discovered the presence of an oxygen-carrying molecule in the atmosphere of WASP-33b, an exoplanet orbiting around a star but not around our sun.

The findings of the study could be very important for future scientists. "We would like to further develop instruments and techniques that enable us to apply these methods to the planets, and ultimately, to a second Earth," said Dr. Hajime Kawahara, Assistant Professor at the University of Tokyo.

The team was able to detect the hydroxyl radical (OH), one of the most dominant oxygen-carrying molecules found at high temperatures, for the first time in an exoplanet atmosphere.

This particular molecule is found in the Earth's atmosphere when water vapor reacts with atomic oxygen, a much purer and more volatile form of the gas we breathe. On Earth, OH plays a crucial role in minimizing climate change, acting as a “detergent” that disrupts the accumulation of harmful gases in the atmosphere.

"The science of extrasolar planets is relatively new, and a major goal of modern astronomy is to explore these planets' atmospheres in detail and look for Earth-like exoplanets," said Dr. Neale Gibson, a professor at Trinity College. Dublin and co-author of the research.

"Every new atmospheric species discovered further improves our understanding of exoplanets and the techniques required to study their atmosphere and brings us closer to that goal."

Sources: Euronews, SciTechDaily