A group of scientists from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and the University of Birmingham (UB) have published a paper on what they believe is a win-win method of detecting biological life and water on planets in other star systems. .

We study extraterrestrials for a variety of reasons, but the real reward will be the discovery of reliable evidence of life beyond Earth. The first step towards this was the detection of worlds in the so-called habitable zone of stars. This allows water to remain in the liquid phase, creating the conditions for the birth of life as we know it on Earth. Other signs of the presence of biological life on exoplanets are certain chemical elements and compounds that accompany life processes; for example, this can be reported by carbon and its compounds as well as phosphorus and oxygen.

Of course, not everything is that clear. For example, today the whole world is standing up to fight against greenhouse gases and direct CO2 emissions.₂. At the same time, only 0.04% of carbon dioxide is found in Earth’s atmosphere and 95% in Mars’ atmosphere. In the atmosphere of Venus it is even more – 96.5%, and it certainly cannot be called friendly to biological life. It is believed that the whole point lies in the large bodies of water on Earth. The ocean absorbs approximately 80% of the CO2 emitted by biomass. Astronomers recommend paying attention to this sign.

Researchers recommend looking for exoplanets that have very small amounts of carbon dioxide in their atmospheres. On such a planet, then, you might expect to find large reservoirs of liquid water, significantly increasing the chances of biological life developing. However, the presence of water does not necessarily mean the existence of life. Therefore, to detect this, the presence of ozone must also be checked. It is easier to detect than oxygen in the spectrum of exoplanet atmospheres. If there is biomass on the planet that absorbs carbon, then it will likely produce oxygen. Under the influence of starlight, oxygen will turn into ozone, and if there is a lot of biomass, there will also be an excess of ozone.

” If we see ozone, there’s a good chance it’s caused by life’s consumption of carbon dioxide. – Name the authors of the study, published Dec. 28 in the journal Nature Astronomer . — And if this is life, then it is a wonderful life. It won’t just be a few bacteria. “This will be planetary-scale biomass that can process and interact with large amounts of carbon.”

Fortunately, the eponymous space observatory James Webb is able to conduct such research, and with its help the discovery of signs of life in other systems may not be delayed by its appearance.