The James Webb Space Telescope has been helping scientists explore space since its launch. While new studies are being conducted every day in hopes of finding another potentially habitable planet, the James Webb Space Telescope also serves as a great help in these studies.

The telescope not only sheds light on the secrets of the universe, but also continues to offer us pictures of the unique landscapes of space. Seen as a big step toward exploring the unknown aspects of space, the James Webb Space Telescope will search for the smell of “methane gas” to find new planets.

James Webb Space Telescope looks for the smell of methane gas

Research scientist at the University of California, Santa Cruz and his team say that if the James Webb Space Telescope encounters a possible smell of methane gas, they could have a lot of information about other planets. Of course, the presence of methane gas in space requires a lot of research. eg; the density of the gas and the examination of other gases associated with it needs.

After the James Webb Space Telescope detects a methane gas, researchers look at three criteria to determine whether methane is a biosignature: the amount of carbon dioxide, the presence of more methane in the atmosphere than carbon monoxide and the planet’s water scarcity. Although for many years Although methane gas is considered a bio-signature, this gas can occur for many natural and unnatural reasons. Methane gas is only seen as part of the puzzle to be solved on the way to a habitable planet. However, with the help of this piece, researchers can still eliminate false possibilities and focus on the right ones.

If a planet has both methane gas and large amounts of carbon monoxide in its atmosphere, it means that methane gas is not a biological characteristic. This is an important piece of information that could end the researchers’ discussion of “habitability” on that planet. However, planets must be viewed from many perspectives in terms of habitability. With the James Webb Space Telescope’s ability to smell methane gas, researchers will be able to rule out at least some possibilities that could be true, and planets with methane gas levels that best fit the definition of a ‘habitable planet’ can focus.