Using the James Webb Space Telescope, astronomers have found carbon dioxide in the atmosphere of a Saturn-size planet 700 light-years away—the first unambiguous detection of the gas in a planet beyond the Solar System.
Astronomers have found carbon dioxide in the atmosphere of a Saturn-size planet 700 light-years away—the first unambiguous detection of the gas in a planet beyond the Solar System. The discovery, made by the, provides clues to how the planet formed. The result also shows just how quickly Webb may identify a spate of other gases, such as methane and ammonia, which could hint at a planet’s potential habitability for life.
The Webb telescope is sensitive to infrared wavelengths of light that are mostly blocked by Earth’s atmosphere. It has already dazzled astronomers with its ability to bring the universe’sBut the infrared sensitivity is also critical for researchers studying worlds much closer to home, in the Milky Way. When an exoplanet’s orbit takes it in front of its star, some of the starlight passes through the planet’s atmosphere and carries fingerprints of its composition.
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