Researchers may have uncovered a new method for detecting liquid water on exoplanets.
The scientific findings were published in the journal Nature Astronomy on December 28.
The study proposes a way to identify exoplanets – a planet that orbits a star outside the solar system harboring oceans and potentially even hosting alien life.
Currently, finding liquid water on exoplanets is like searching for a needle in a haystack.
Despite discovering over 5,000 exoplanets, it has been difficult for scientists to confirm the presence of water.
While we can sometimes detect water vapor in their atmospheres, pinpointing planets with actual oceans is a different story.
The new findings suggest that by comparing the carbon dioxide (CO2) levels of neighboring exoplanets, we can identify potential water worlds.
The key lies in the fact that Earth's oceans absorb a significant portion of atmospheric CO2.
So, an exoplanet with significantly lower CO2 levels then its neighbors could be hiding liquid oceans beneath its surface.
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