Methane

Could Life Exist in Molecular Clouds?

Our search for life beyond Earth is still in its infancy. We're focused on Mars and, to a lesser extent,…

1 week ago

Wow. JWST Just Found Methane in an Exoplanet Atmosphere

If there's one chemical that causes excitement in the search for biosignatures on other worlds, it's methane. It's not a…

2 weeks ago

It’s Not Conclusive, But Methane is Probably the Best Sign of Life on Exoplanets

When the James Webb Space Telescope aims at exoplanet atmospheres, it'll use spectroscopy to identify chemical elements. One of the…

2 years ago

Satellites can now see Exactly Where Methane is Being Dumped Into the Atmosphere

Methane is one of the most important greenhouse gases, despite the overwhelming interest in carbon dioxide emissions as the primary…

2 years ago

Dragonfly Mission has Some Ambitious Science Goals to Accomplish When it Arrives at Titan

As any good project manager will tell you, goals are necessary to complete any successful project.  The more audacious the…

2 years ago

Cassini Saw Methane in Enceladus’ Plumes. Scientists Don’t Know How it Could be There Without Life

Even though the Cassini mission at Saturn ended nearly four years ago, data from the spacecraft still keeps scientists busy.…

2 years ago

With Funding From Jeff Bezos, MethaneSAT Picks Elon Musk’s SpaceX for 2022 Launch

Billionaires Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk are usually rivals on the final frontier, but they both have a role to…

3 years ago

If a Planet Has a Lot of Methane in its Atmosphere, Life is the Most Likely Cause

The ultra-powerful James Webb Space Telescope will launch soon. Once it's deployed, and in position at the Earth-Sun Lagrange Point…

3 years ago

Even If We Cut Greenhouse Gas Emissions Tomorrow, it Would Take Decades for the Earth to Start Cooling Again

If—or hopefully when—we cut our Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions, we won't notice much difference in the climate. The Earth's natural…

3 years ago

Molecular Oxygen on Mars is Behaving Unusually Through the Seasons. A Sign of Life?

An atmospheric drama has been playing out on Mars lately. Up until now, the main actor has been methane, and…

4 years ago