From Newsgroup: alt.astronomy
On 13/08/2026 21:57, Daniel wrote:
Richard Harnden <richard.nospam@gmail.invalid> writes:
"Researchers have found the first atmosphere surrounding an
Earth-like, rocky planet orbiting within the habitable zone of a
distant star."
<https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cy4kdd1e0ejo>
Mostly helium.
May I be the first to welcome our squeaky-voiced alien overlords.
Any chance you can paste the article?
Sure ...
First atmosphere found on Earth-like planet in habitable zone of distant
star
An artist's impression of exoplanet LHS 1140b, a large reddish-brown
rocky planet filling the foreground, edged with a faint blue-white
atmospheric glow. In the dark background, a small red star glows
brightly, with a second, closer planet shown as a tiny black silhouette crossing in front of it
IMAGE SOURCE, MELISSA WEISS/CENTER FOR ASTROPHYSICS |HARVARD & SMITHSONIAN Image caption,
Artwork: The red tinge illustrates an atmosphere around a rocky planet
orbting a red star
By Pallab Ghosh
Science Correspondent
Published
17 July 2026
Researchers have found the first atmosphere surrounding an Earth-like,
rocky planet orbiting within the habitable zone of a distant star.
The researchers say that their discovery provides the strongest evidence
yet that worlds with conditions similar to Earth could exist beyond our
solar system.
The gas detected in the atmosphere is helium, which would not be able to support life, but other gases may also be present.
The lead author, Dr Collin Cherubim of Harvard University, described the discovery as "a big deal".
"This is the first time anyone has found an atmosphere on a rocky planet
in the habitable zone of another star."
The planet, called LHS 1140 b, is 48 light-years from Earth orbiting a
red star much smaller and cooler than our Sun.
More than 6,000 worlds have been discovered orbiting distant stars. But
the new discovery is significant because it brings us a step closer to
one of the biggest prizes in science: the discovery of life on another
world.
The researchers, writing in the journal Science, external, are clear rCo
they have not done that, at least not yet. But for a planet to support
life it has to have water and for that it has to be the right distance
from its star: not too close because it will be too hot and not too far, because it will be too cold rCo but somewhere in between where it will be "just right".
Planetary scientists call this the "Goldilocks zone", after the fairy
tale girl who was fussy about the temperature of her porridge.
Hundreds of planets have been found in the Goldilocks zones of their respective stars rCo but only a few dozen are small and rocky rCo like our
own Earth rCo which is another tick for a planet's ability to support life.
But none of those have been found to have an atmosphere.
Until now.
But the only gas discovered in the atmosphere so far is helium, probably
in the upper atmosphere, which on its own would not support life.
But there may be other, more life-sustaining gases, lower down. Dr David Charbonneau, also from Harvard, said that the important thing was the discovery of an Earth-like planet outside of our solar system with an atmosphere.
"People are generally interested in the big questions: Are we alone? Is
there life beyond the Earth or beyond our solar system? To that end,
this study reveals the first atmosphere discovered on a rocky planet in
the habitable zone of a star outside of our solar system," he said.
LHS 1140b isn't the only world under scrutiny in the search for life.
K2-18b, a sub-Neptune with a possible water-rich interior, made
headlines when scientists spotted signs of dimethyl sulphide rCo a gas
linked to marine life on Earth.
But a Nasa-led reanalysis in 2025 found the signal too weak to confirm,
and showed the gas can form without biology.
The seven rocky worlds of TRAPPIST-1 remain tantalising, too: Nasa's
James Webb Space Telescope ruled out an Earth-like atmosphere on
TRAPPIST-1d, while TRAPPIST-1e's data stay frustratingly inconclusive.
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