Nikku Madhusudhan: University of Cambridge Professor of Astrophysics and Exoplanetary Science on the possible signs of life on a distant exo-planet

Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive

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23d ago 5:08

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One Cambridge scientist may have gotten us one step closer to discovering life on other planets.

Professor Nikku Madhusudhan came across dimethyl sulphide gas on planet K2-18b during a routine scan - a gas mainly produced by living things.

He says the planet is suspected to be an ocean world with a hydrogen-rich atmosphere, meaning the gas could come from microorganisms.

"Any discovery of life outside of any kind is a major advancement, because that tells us that the origin of life is not unique to Earth. And that is one of the central questions of science."

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