NASA Detects Possible Signs of Life on Planet in Distant Solar System

NASA has discovered an Earth-like exoplanet in a habitable zone known to harbor carbon-bearing molecules—meaning the planet may support life.

This illustration released by NASA on Sept. 11, 2023, shows what exoplanet K2-18 b could look like based on science data. Courtesy of NASA/ESA/CSA/Joseph Olmsted

NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope has discovered a giant Earth-like exoplanet located scores of light years away in a habitable zone known to harbor carbon-bearing molecules—meaning the planet may support life.

The space agency announced in a statement this week that a spectral analysis of K2-18 b—an exoplanet about eight times as massive as Earth located some 120 light years away—detected significant levels of carbon-bearing molecules including methane and carbon dioxide.