Scientists have again found signs of life in the atmosphere of Venus - there are traces of phosphine in the clouds at an altitude of 50 km from the surface

A few years ago, scientists discovered phosphine in the atmosphere of Venus. In 2020, British researchers faced criticism because their discovery was not confirmed by third-party observations. Three years later, the situation seems to have changed. At least, things are looking up.

Here's What We Know

Phosphine is a gas that on our planet is a product of microorganisms. Scientists know of no other sources of phosphine, so it is generally accepted that this gas indicates the presence of biological life in space.

JCMT telescope in Hawaii helped British scientists to find traces of phosphine in the atmosphere of the second planet from the Sun. Because of the high temperature, the gas cannot exist on the surface of Venus. So the scientists decided to look a little higher up.

Traces of phosphine were found 50 kilometres above the surface of Venus. It is assumed that here the conditions are comparable to those on Earth in terms of both temperature and pressure.

The gas was planned to be searched for using an apparatus called Photon. It would be sent into space by an Electron rocket. The mission was scheduled for May, but Rocket Lab announced that the launch has been postponed indefinitely.

Source: space