Possible signs of life have been found on Venus. According to CBS News, scientists recently discovered traces of phosphine, a colorless, flammable and very toxic gas, often associated with human industry on Earth.
"We have detected a rare gas called phosphine in the atmosphere of our neighbor planet Venus," said Jane Greaves, professor at Cardiff University and author of a recent report published in Nature Astronomy. "And the reason for our excitement is that phosphine gas on Earth is made by microorganisms that live in oxygen-free environments. And so there is a chance that we have detected some kind of living organism in the clouds of Venus."
Those involved in the project are quick to state that more research is needed before claiming life has been discovered on the planet. However, these new findings suggest the possibility of microbial activity in Venus' upper atmosphere.
"In order to make this quite extraordinary claim that there might be life there, we really have to rule everything out, and that's why we're very cautious saying we're not claiming there's life, but claiming there's something that is really unknown and it might be life," said MIT researcher William Bains.
A fellow MIT scientist, Sara Seager, added, "We are not claiming we have found life on Venus. We are claiming the confident detection of phosphine gas whose existence is a mystery. Phosphine can be produced by some (non-biological) processes on Venus, but only in such incredibly tiny amounts it's not enough to explain our observation. So we're left with this other exciting, enticing possibility: that perhaps there is some kind of life in Venus' clouds."
The upper atmosphere of Venus has temperatures more suitable for life, similar to that of Earth. On the surface of the planet, however, temperatures can reach upwards of 900 degrees, as thick clouds trap sunlight.
"The surface conditions there today are really hostile, the temperature is enough to melt our landers," Greaves said. "But it's thought that much earlier in Venus' history the surface was much cooler and wetter and life possibly could have originated.
"There is a long-standing theory that some of the smallest forms of life might have been able to evolve upwards into the high clouds," she continued. "Conditions there are certainly not nice, they're extremely acidic and it's very windy, but on the other hand, if you're talking about 50 to 60 kilometers up, then the pressure is much like it is on the surface of the Earth and the temperature's quite nice, maybe up to about 85 degrees Fahrenheit. So it's been hypothesized that this is a living habitat today."
Through their research utilizing the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope in Hawaii and 45 radio telescope antennas in Chile, Greaves' team had similar findings from both observatories, "faint absorption at the right wavelength to be phosphine gas, where the molecules are backlit by the warmer clouds below," she stated.
The phosphine found on Venus does not automatically equate to potential lifeforms. Researchers are still unsure of how something could survive the intense sulfuric acid in the atmosphere.
"On Earth, some microbes can cope with up to about 5% of acid in their environment, but the clouds of Venus are almost entirely made of acid," said Cara Sousa Silva, researcher at MIT.
Greaves et al. will continue their study once they are allotted additional telescope time. Specifically, they will look for other gases commonly associated with biological activity.
"Ultimately, the only thing that will answer this question for us — is there life, is there not life — is actually going to Venus and making more detailed measurements for signs of life and maybe life itself," said Seager.
For more on the possibility of life on Venus, visit CBS News.
