Tag: brown dwarf
-
Phosphine on a brown dwarf reshapes the life-sign biosignature debate
Phosphine on a brown dwarf: a surprising detection NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has detected phosphine in the atmosphere of Wolf 1130C, a brown dwarf often described as a “failed star.” The discovery, published in Science, challenges the idea that phosphine is a universal sign of life. Brown dwarfs sit between planets and stars:…
-
JWST Captures Auroras on a Rogue World: SIMP-0136
JWST Sheds Light on SIMP-0136, a Rogue World The James Webb Space Telescope is offering a striking new look at SIMP-0136, a distant sunless world that glows with auroras brighter than Earth’s northern lights. Located roughly 20 light-years away, this object isn’t a planet in the traditional sense and isn’t a full-fledged star either. SIMP-0136…
-
James Webb Space Telescope Captures Auroras on a Rogue World
Discovery: Auroras Brighten a Rogue World The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has unveiled a striking phenomenon on SIMP-0136, a distant world that roams interstellar space without a parent star. Located roughly 20 light-years away, SIMP-0136 is about 200 million years old and is best described as a brown dwarf — a celestial object perched…
-
JWST Captures Auroras on a Rogue World SIMP-0136
JWST Delivers a New View of SIMP-0136 The James Webb Space Telescope has offered astronomers a rare look at SIMP-0136, a rogue world that drifts through interstellar space without a parent star. About 20 light-years away, this object is roughly 200 million years old and sits in a curious middle ground between a brown dwarf…
-
Phosphine in Brown Dwarf Atmospheres: Biosignature Clues
Introduction: Phosphine and the hunt for life beyond Earth Scientists seeking life beyond our planet often focus on biosignatures—molecules that hint at biological processes. Phosphine, a gas produced by anaerobic microbes on Earth, has long been proposed as a potential marker of life. Yet before any molecule can be treated as a true biosignature, researchers…
-
Phosphine Detected in Brown Dwarf Atmosphere
Biosignatures, phosphine, and the brown-dwarf twist In the search for life beyond Earth, scientists look for biosignatures—molecules whose presence could signal biology. Phosphine is one such candidate because on our planet it is produced primarily by anaerobic organisms and is rarely formed through abiotic processes in oxygen-rich environments. Yet before scientists declare any molecule a…