Chennai: In a possible hint of microbial life in the atmosphere of Venus, scientists have announced the discovery of a rare molecule—phosphine—in the clouds of our neighbouring planet.
According to the researchers, including those from the Cardiff University in the UK, on Earth, phosphine gas is only made industrially, or by microbes that thrive in oxygen-free environments.
Researchers have speculated for decades that high clouds on Venus could offer a home for microbes— floating free of the scorching surface, but still needing to tolerate very high acidity.
According to the research published in the journal in Nature Astronomy, the detection of phosphine molecules, which consist of hydrogen and phosphorus, could point to this extra-terrestrial ‘aerial’ life.
The team first used the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope (JCMT) in Hawaii to detect the phosphine.
They were then awarded time to follow up their discovery with 45 telescopes of the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) in Chile.