K2-18b: did JWST really find evidence of life on this exoplanet?

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Күн бұрын

AD | To try everything Brilliant has to offer for free for a full 30 days, visit brilliant.org/DrBecky and you'll also get 20% off an annual premium subscription. | Back in 2023, we saw the first ever claim that JWST had discovered a possible signature of life in the atmosphere of an exoplanet, a planet orbiting another star in our galaxy the Milky Way. But the evidence for the claim that dimethyl sulphide exists in K2-18b’s atmosphere was weak. Now, in the past few months of 2024, we’ve had two new papers analysing the data from K2-18b which both claim there are other models that can explain K2-18b just as well, with the same level of statistical backing. So what is going on here? So let's dive into what’s going on so you can all make up your own mind.
Madhusudhan et al. (2023; hycean world with DMS evidence) - arxiv.org/pdf/2309.05566.pdf
Shorttle et al. (2024; hydrogen atmosphere with magma ocean) - arxiv.org/pdf/2401.05864
Wogan et al. (2024; mini-Neptune) - arxiv.org/pdf/2401.11082
Hu et al. (2021; prediction of the molecules present in a hycean world atmosphere) - arxiv.org/pdf/2108.04745.pdf
Benneke et al. (2019; water vapour in K2-18b's atmosphere) - arxiv.org/pdf/1909.04642.pdf
Cloutier et al. (2019; K2-18b mass) - arxiv.org/pdf/1810.04731
Foreman-Mackey et al. (2015; K2-18b discovered in K2 data) - arxiv.org/pdf/1502.04715
Seager et al. (2013; biosignatures in hydrogen atmospheres) - arxiv.org/pdf/1309.6016.pdf
JWST proposal 2722 - www.stsci.edu/jwst/phase2-pub...
JWST proposal 2372 - www.stsci.edu/jwst/phase2-pub...
00:00 - Introduction
02:45 - What do we know about K2-18b so far?
05:21 - Madhusudhan et al. (2023) - K2-18b is a hydrogen atmosphere with a liquid water ocean with dimethyl sulphide
09:33 - Shorttle et al. (2024) - K2-18b has hydrogen atmosphere with a magma ocean
11:05 - Wogan et al. (2024) - K2-18b is just a mini-Neptune
13:19 - What data do we need to figure this out?
16:37 - Bloopers
My previous video on K2-18b: • Did JWST find a MARKER...
My previous video on the markers for life JWST is looking for: • JWST is hunting for th...
Video filmed on a Sony ⍺7 IV
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👩🏽‍💻 I'm Dr. Becky Smethurst, an astrophysicist at the University of Oxford (Christ Church). I love making videos about science with an unnatural level of enthusiasm. I like to focus on how we know things, not just what we know. And especially, the things we still don't know. If you've ever wondered about something in space and couldn't find an answer online - you can ask me! My day job is to do research into how supermassive black holes can affect the galaxies that they live in. In particular, I look at whether the energy output from the disk of material orbiting around a growing supermassive black hole can stop a galaxy from forming stars.
drbecky.uk.com
rebeccasmethurst.co.uk

Пікірлер: 722

@gleedads 19 күн бұрын

Awesome summary: "Promise me you'll bear all of this in mind...just because one model fits the data doesn't mean there aren't other models..." This is such a good summary of the essence of science that I will probably point my students at this video, whether we are studying anything to do with exoplanets or not.

@louisgiokas2206 19 күн бұрын

I was thinking that as well. The thing with all this astrophysics stuff is that, until one actually sends a probe, it is all speculation. This isn't particle physics where one does controlled experiments. This is more like archaeology or anthropology, where a new pottery shard or bone fragment can totally change all the previous explanations. Just look at what JWST has done to the field in a short period of time. We have new "digs", in effect. As Dr. Becky points out, a particular molecule is only known to be made by life on earth, and cannot come from other atmospheric processes, etc. Well, just in our solar system we know of moons and planets (we sent probes) with totally different atmospheric composition and processes. Even in particle physics, for example, the experiment can only tend to support, or not, a particular model. This is what my physics professors, who I worked for in the High Energy Physics department, told me when I was a boy (half a century ago, actually). It's sort of the same thing. In both cases we are looking at either the very small or very large, or very short or very long timeframes, which are things we cannot directly experience.

@DrBecky 18 күн бұрын

Thanks!

@kaitlyn__L 18 күн бұрын

@@louisgiokas2206 great comparison to archaeology! I've always been drawn to the room for debate and imagination that come alongside observations.

@deltalima6703 16 күн бұрын

@DrBecky whats the story with anton petrovs new video? (Black hole jets switching directions) Whole thing is fishy, makes no sense to me.

@Wildman-zh8lg 9 күн бұрын

@@DrBeckyI hope there's actual real life there

@mastick5106 19 күн бұрын

"Well, this kind of confusion, of not knowing what the actual right answer is, is science in action and it's wonderful to see." This attitude is honestly the main reason I subscribed to your channel. I love it.

@DrBecky 18 күн бұрын

Thanks! 🤗

@Jay1bad1 16 күн бұрын

@@DrBeckywhat do you know about junglevrse.that you cannot tell!!!.Jwst..when proposed..supposed to see structures on exoplanet....Do you get to c any of these pics

@bujin1977 19 күн бұрын

One thing that blows my mind is that I went to university to study astrophysics not very long after the first exoplanet was discovered. I found it fascinating back then that we had the ability to detect planets around other stars. And now we're able to analyse the light passing through the atmospheres of these planets. I wonder where we'll be in another 30 years time.

@Sableagle 19 күн бұрын

Shaking trees, banging our chests and T-posing to assert dominance in the ongoing struggle to get access to potable water.

@lyricallysupreme 17 күн бұрын

We’ll definitely have found life by then.

@EinsteinsHair 17 күн бұрын

Hopefully we will not be debating models of an atmosphere, but with good enough data to have certainty quickly. Naturally, the goal is not just the major components of the atmosphere, but molecules which make up a small percentage. I wonder how long that will take? Also, hopefully, we will be looking at light reflecting off an atmosphere, where the planet does not transit perfectly. I want all of this!

@davepastern 15 сағат бұрын

@@lyricallysupreme unless we change our data sets, I highly doubt it. We need to focus on G type stars, similar to our Sun (output and size). And, imho, a similar age. IMHO, we aren't looking in the right places and are currently wasting our time and resources.

@SazzleCam 19 күн бұрын

1st rule of media: Don't let data & scientific analysis get in the way of selling a good story.

@Cara.314 19 күн бұрын

Isn't capitalism great!!??

@noelstarchild 19 күн бұрын

You're right damn it.

@katesmiles4208 19 күн бұрын

The original saying was never let the facts get in the way of a good story. Your version works too..

@martinross6416 19 күн бұрын

Or more funding.

@stewiesaidthat 19 күн бұрын

@@katesmiles4208we choose truth over facts. When the facts don't support the narrative, choose truth.

@jacobhald1377 19 күн бұрын

Just want to point out that magma means underground molten rock, where lava means topside molten rock. So a magma ocean would mean an underground ocean of molten rock. I guess that's sort of what we have right here at home in our own planet. In other words, we got K2-18b at home! :D

@sillyjellyfish2421 19 күн бұрын

Meanwhile here i am internally screaming a little because the liquid water IS lava and water ice IS rock. Just because we are used to exist in the temperature and pressure range where it happens to be melting all the time it doesn't mean it's not lava. And sure, H2O is no SiO4, but hey, neither are tons of other minerals on Earth. Lava/magma is a very wide concept that matches tons of materials with different chemistry

@EliasMheart 18 күн бұрын

I think there was a card in the video pointing this out :P K2-18b at home: 🌍

@anamewithstyle 18 күн бұрын

What do you expect from the people who consider oxygen to be a metal?

@davidwuhrer6704 17 күн бұрын

Most rock in the mantle is solid. High pressure. It only becomes liquid near the surface, at the same temperature with less pressure. Not a liquid rock ocean by any stretch.

@a.karley4672 17 күн бұрын

@@sillyjellyfish2421 Aha! A willing recruit for #TeamIce in the next "Mineral Cup" event on social media. We'll freeze out those "hot lava" people yet!

@luudest 19 күн бұрын

Ok, we need to build a bigger telescope right now.

@me0101001000 19 күн бұрын

Yeah, we do! The question is, where do we put it?

@davelordy 19 күн бұрын

We could just find people with smaller eyes, save a lot of money.

@dedcowbowee 19 күн бұрын

@@davelordy It just might work!!!!!!

@stricklst 19 күн бұрын

Already in the works. Just 20 years away

@johnfoppiano7058 19 күн бұрын

They are.

@tf454 19 күн бұрын

Dr. Becky videos are just pure gems. Thank you again.

@RaeanneNichol 19 күн бұрын

I simply love your channel because you illustrate quite well how same data can be interpreted in many different ways. And which is why we need to keep asking questions and obtaining more data to better understand our universe just a little more clearly.

@kayleescruggs6888 19 күн бұрын

I was in high school when discovery of the first exoplanet was announced. And now, we might soon have evidence of life on them. It almost feels like science fiction.

@Paul-rs4gd 19 күн бұрын

For most of my life, it was considered that detecting planets around other stars was beyond our capability.

@sapphonymph8204 14 күн бұрын

It is.

@StEvEn-dp1ri 18 күн бұрын

As a non-scientist, but an armchair science enthusiast, it drives me crazy to see the claims that some of these "scientists" make using such imperfect data. The ambiguity in the data leaves way too much room for interpretation to make a claim this important.

@mikeoitzman8275 19 күн бұрын

Awesome analysis. You break it down nicely for the layman. Appreciate you! Keep up the great work.

@d_mosimann 19 күн бұрын

Call me back when found an earth-sized planet arround a G-Star with life signs on it.

@bujin1977 19 күн бұрын

I've found one. I just looked down. No intelligent life, unfortunately.

@d_mosimann 19 күн бұрын

@@bujin1977 😂good one

@sapphonymph8204 14 күн бұрын

You'll wait a long time for that call. Like an eternity.

@JeffLearman 19 күн бұрын

THANKS! I saw the headlines but didn't even bother to read, hoping it'd be covered here, especially if it wasn't the usual news hype.

@LeftCoastStephen 19 күн бұрын

I listen to this and am reminded of the old saying: Lies, damned lies and STATISTICS. Excellent explanation of something that goes so far over my head it could be in orbit 😊

@stewiesaidthat 19 күн бұрын

As Jack Nicholson put it, You can't handle the truth. Science has gone down the road of telling little lies in order to get government funding. Now they are having to make up bigger lies in order to get bigger grants. JWST has found life on Planet 51. Now we need a bigger telescope to confirm it. We need money to build a radio-telescope array to listen for signals in case they might be communicating with us. It's always the same with these scammers.

@DESOUSAB 18 күн бұрын

Came here to say the same thing.

@davidwuhrer6704 17 күн бұрын

Statistics don't lie. They often don't say what people don't want them to say, and some people lie with statistics by judiciously omitting confounders (and of course variance). But the numbers themselves don't lie.

@clew5687 17 күн бұрын

Gotta be careful with statistics. 25% of crashes are caused by drink drivers.......75% sober drivers. Therefore it's safer to drive whilst drunk 😉

@a.karley4672 17 күн бұрын

Statistics is a relatively simple field. More people should do it - and would benefit from it. If it didn't depend, in significant degree, on calculus, I'd say rearranging compulsory maths education to ditch the calculus in favour of (applied) statistics would be a good thing. Pundits and politicians who like to hide reality behind confusingly inappropriate layers of statistical bullshit would hate that - it would be so much harder for them to lie to their audiences. So it'll never happen.

@UnknownUser-rb9pd 19 күн бұрын

I really hope the media interest continues because that's how we inspire new people and hopefully encourage Governments to continue funding research into things that have no real current practical benefit at a time of pressing budget issues. The Chinese landing on the moon again and a likely cold war developing between China and Western democracies will hopefully encourage the US and other Western nations to put more resources into space exploration similar to what happened in the 1950s and 1960s where we went from the first satellite to landing on the moon in 12 years because each side was scared of being left behind. When I was growing up I fully expected that progress to continue and that interplanetary spaceflight would be routine nowadays but sadly, despite some impressive unmanned missions and telescopes like Hubble and JWST, we've mostly tread water as far as human exploration is concerned.

@thereagauze 19 күн бұрын

it'll inspire some and cause others to say THEY ARE JUST GUESSING! A NEW THEORY EVERY WEEK, which is actually how science works when something better or conflicting comes along.

@highlandrc9036 19 күн бұрын

Another great video... Thanks Dr. Becky

@seliasthemage 18 күн бұрын

I really like the way you cover this by talking through each of the papers.

@samedwards6683 19 күн бұрын

Thanks so much for creating and sharing this informative video. Great job. Keep it up.

@aflictionado5080 19 күн бұрын

Love you Dr B!

@AmateurHistorian999 11 күн бұрын

Thank you for this great report! I've subscribed and I'm looking forward to more. As I watched, I was paying as much attention to the data analysis as to K2-18b itself. I'm applying to a Masters program in economics, and for that I'll need to know statistics and other analytical tools. So as your video got toward the end I was thinking, OK, time to start on that. And hey ho there you go, you're talking about Brilliant and its new material on data analysis. Synchronicity -- you gotta love it. Thank you for that too. Cheers, Chris Schulman

@jameshorigan3322 19 күн бұрын

Thank you for another great video Doctor. One for the algorithm! 🙂

@chadcrotts870 19 күн бұрын

Thank you as always for making the complex easy to understand for the casual observer.

@frankvanderpool9001 14 күн бұрын

Your excitement about hat you do is invigorating and I enjoy listening to you explain plausible possibilities of complex scenarios is mesmerizing. I'm a retired Industrial teacher and I know when someone is doing a great job. I do share your astronomical interest. Have a sunny day and a clear night!

@grahamrich3368 7 күн бұрын

Fascinating stuff! Thank you Dr Becky!! 👏👏

@FredPilcher 18 күн бұрын

Great exposition. Thanks Dr Becky!

@Mo.Jo.MTB_101 18 күн бұрын

Thanks again for your work!!! Having Astrophysics broken down like this is amazing!!! I love to learn but as my dream job (I work in Chemistry) is sometimes demanding I don't have time to read as many papers in other fields as I would like so your channel is much much appreciated!!!

@barry8642 19 күн бұрын

The second amazing outlook on our frontier for space science. Thank You Dr Becky you are amazing also great work your videos are inspiring in so many ways

@user-rv2qx9yy9x 19 күн бұрын

I will never kneel before Zod.

@arunapandya1722 19 күн бұрын

😂🤣🤣 Good one!!

@COLDB33R 19 күн бұрын

Good to get those kind of declarations out there early. You avoid the inevitable rush should Zod ever actually show up.

@marktunnicliffe2495 19 күн бұрын

Zod dammit!!

@planexshifter 19 күн бұрын

What about Mega Maid?

@happyshadow 19 күн бұрын

So we can calculate redshift but Alexa still doesn't know how much time there's left on the timer?!

@Joshua-by4qv 18 күн бұрын

I'm back in school now, majoring in Dr. Becky. This is so fascinating.

@desmondellis657 19 күн бұрын

This is why I love science so much; there’s always something new and interesting going on! From exoplanets to the age of the Universe, it is so exciting! Thank you Dr Becky, and all scientists who make it so exciting to be alive in this day and age!👍🏼

@robinbeattie3404 15 күн бұрын

I appreciate your presenting varied theories associated with represented data. Again I do enjoy your presentation

@seraphuziel 19 күн бұрын

Nails on point! also, damned great show.

@b4nh4mm3rplays 16 күн бұрын

I just started following BBC earth science and was pleasantly surprised to see you on it.

@truthinesssss 19 күн бұрын

Well done, thank you.

@zriraum 19 күн бұрын

Always excited when a new becky video drops! Space videos at night is the vibe🤩

@michaelogden5958 19 күн бұрын

I wonder what would happen if all of the scientists agreed that there IS life on some planet 100+ light years from earth.

@forMacguyver 19 күн бұрын

That will happen as soon as we can watch an episode of "Aliens got Talent"

@michaelogden5958 19 күн бұрын

@@forMacguyver well said.

@Poppa_Capinyoaz 19 күн бұрын

'Show me what you got'

@davidwright8432 19 күн бұрын

Then there would be a great deal of compelling evidence for that.

@billcook4768 19 күн бұрын

I can’t think of anything we could observe that would convince 100% of scientists that we had confirmed life. At best we may get to “a majority of scientists think it more likely than not” and even then I’m not sure what we would observe that would get us there.

@noelstarchild 19 күн бұрын

Knowledge and facts are worthy to pass on. Just got your book. Thank you.

@DrBecky 18 күн бұрын

Hope you enjoy it!

@noelstarchild 18 күн бұрын

@@DrBecky It has arrived Yay! Only at Standing on the shoulders of Giants, but am enraptured by it. Hardback, script well centred, and the leaves don't stick, the paper quality good. I struggle to put it down Dr.. Love it.

@peters616 19 күн бұрын

Thanks for a great summary of the current studies on K2-18b. My only issue with the Wogan conclusion is that ammonia was not detected at all and would be expected for a mini-Neptune. They touch on it in the paper saying there are some reasons why a mini-Neptune might not have that much NH3 but it seems like an afterthought especially since Madhusudhan had already noted the non-detection of ammonia in concluding it was likely a Hycean world (presumably ruling out a mini-Neptune) . Looking forward to seeing the new analysis of the new data.

@nicka.papanikolaou9475 19 күн бұрын

Best exposition of the data. Kudos Dr. Becky. However, DMS can be produced by chemical processess. The first one is by reacting methanol and hydrogen sulfide. Methanol can be prouced by the reaction CH4+CO2→CH3OH+CO albeit at high T (600-1000 C). There are other ways to produce methanol. Also the reaction CO2+3H2→CH3OH+H2O also produces methanol but in the presence of metal catalysts such as Cu/ZnO/Al₂O₃. However even this reaction requires a T of 200 C to 270 C. I cannot exclude it though and it may be occuring in the "hot" zone of the planet and then spread in th atmosphere. So did they look for and find any metals? There is methane and water so I consider the reaction plausible! Dr. Nick, Biochemist

@Smashbrothersgaming 15 күн бұрын

When grow up I want to study space so watching you is really useful

@mv11000 18 күн бұрын

Thank you Dr. Becky!

@tofuluvrr837 12 сағат бұрын

You're a great teacher, Dr. Becky!

@kevinconville3199 19 күн бұрын

Thanks!

@Bald_Wizard_Man 18 күн бұрын

"It's never aliens, until it is" -Matt O'Dowd PBS Space Time

@sapphonymph8204 14 күн бұрын

But it never is.

@MS-ki3kr 17 күн бұрын

Interesting video to understand the level of analysis that goes into making every assumption, it's amazing thank you for revealing these to the under educated every day Joe like me. Also what stops someone like the Dr in the video from publishing her own findings? Is there monitary entry barrier or restricted data access just curious. Thank for an an amazing video I would keep coming back to try and understand eventually.

@fozthepoet8274 19 күн бұрын

Well that's my holiday to K2-18b ruined.

@BudgieJane 19 күн бұрын

One thing I have learnt in all my time on this planet is "don't believe everything you read in the newspapers", especially "don't believe anything about advancements in science that you read in the newspapers"

@leoborganelli 19 күн бұрын

One thing I have learned is that learnt is not a word....

@katesmiles4208 19 күн бұрын

I like the very old saying of:- Never believe everything you hear, and only half of what you see.

@Alexander_Grant 19 күн бұрын

In my freshman astronomy course, our professor did a whole segment on science media literacy. I thought it was ridiculous at the time, but man I can spot things in other fields that aren't real with ease now. I have my degree in physics so I can usually tell whether some stuff like this is true or not, but for biology and stuff it is really nice to know what signs to look for. Something fun about that course was that we had to write an article that was fake and used the same tactics that science journalists use, and my girlfriend at that time looked at what I was writing while I was in the bathroom and I came back to her looking horrified at the article I wrote about the moon spiraling towards the earth since I had told her I was working on a paper for that class. It gave me a good laugh.

@stewiesaidthat 19 күн бұрын

@Alexander_Grant if you really have a degree in physics, then explain gravity. Explain time-dilation. Explain the daily and yearly tides if you are familiar with the moon and its orbit around the planet.

@olencone4005 19 күн бұрын

Before things kinda fell apart for them, most newspapers would have one or more science reporters who at least had some training or experience with a scientific field. Their job was to read the scientific papers and simplify them for the public -- the newspapers had a policy to keep the language/concepts simple enough to be understand by a 6th grader (or an adult with only a 6th grade education). When the rising tide of online media began driving print sales down into the sub-basements, those specialized reporters were the first ones that were cut... which left the general news reporters now trying to figure out complex reports and studies that were most definitely not written at a 6th grade level, with the disappointing results we have today :(

@alistairgray5466 19 күн бұрын

Super insightful video! The scientific method can be quite sobering but it's our best path towards unbiased truths

@AbAb-th5qe 19 күн бұрын

Agreed. Progress is rarely in the way you'd expect. Many people jumped the gun with those claims of room temperature superconductors as well. We all want to see emotionally evocative results and that can skew the conclusions we draw from data. I think the replication crisis is testament to that.

@xannith9533 9 күн бұрын

Thank you!

@Harabeck 18 күн бұрын

Very cool. As much as I'd love to find evidence of life, I really appreciate this discussion of all the neat possibilities!

@GeekTeacherMaude 17 күн бұрын

Thank you Dr. Becky, you make me love science so much!

@JazzyArtKL 19 күн бұрын

Thanks Dr.

@kedarsharma487 18 күн бұрын

Becky, is it not possible to use spectroscopy data from other space observatories which can detect other parts of the EM spectrum to distinguish between CH4 and DMS?

@Emurderproductions 17 күн бұрын

Great explanation

@mw-th9ov 18 күн бұрын

Another excellent presentation of published papers that identifies the issues at stake and the path to resolving the different conclusions.

@robertkiss5461 19 күн бұрын

Huge thank you for the explanation and your objectiveness! I just enjoy to watch your videos. And hate the sensationalist media liars and the claims of the fanatical believers. I am looking forward to see more stuff from you.

@qbarnes1893 19 күн бұрын

Keep it coming Dr Smethurst, your a light in our dark imagination 😂

@NotKnafo 19 күн бұрын

na neptune is not gas all the way down it must have a solid layer at some point if not from metalic elements then from pressure

@davidhoward4715 19 күн бұрын

Na. Do some basic research.

@NotKnafo 18 күн бұрын

@@davidhoward4715 its like Berkley's subjectivism, i only see clouds and no surface so there must be no surface

@matrixtech6917 11 күн бұрын

A very interesting video. I am intrigued by the point of nitrogen dissolving in magma.

@Amethyst_Friend 19 күн бұрын

A missed opportunity to use a clip of Dr.Evil saying “Mag-marrr”…

@alexhanson6577 19 күн бұрын

Hi Dr Becky, I am curious to know whether AI is being used at all in the fitting of the models to the absorption spectra? If not, is this something that is being worked on to increase the accuracy of identifying the chemical composition?

@SPTO 19 күн бұрын

This was a very good and well explained video. Based on what you laid out I'm going to be cautiously optimistic for life but it's probably more likely it's a mini-Neptune. Hopefully the new data coming out will shed light and maybe settle everything. Here's to life being on that planet.

@DeathadderOne 19 күн бұрын

this was a good video.

@tomschmidt381 19 күн бұрын

I always fall back to the trope: it is never aliens' until it is!

@stephyadcock1233 16 күн бұрын

Love the video, thank you for the brilliant science facts without the hype. I found your channel via a lecture you did on another science lecture channel recently. Based on what you said in that lecture, I thought I'd let you know for the algorithm, I'm female. Hope that helps.

@MCsCreations 19 күн бұрын

Thanks for all the info, dr. Becky! 😊 Stay safe there with your family! 🖖😊

@gordonwallin2368 18 күн бұрын

Cheers from the Pacific West Coast of Canada.

@JaredJalapeno 19 күн бұрын

Hey HeyDr. Becky! You're the COolest

@osmosisjones4912 19 күн бұрын

If there's different advanced chemistry that become sentient then sebient not just aware. Of the world like an animal o maybe even a cell. But able to manipulate the world together more awareness like build telescopes and detect our atmosphere. Would they recognize a bio signature sense there basic chemistry is different . .

@howardtreesong4860 8 күн бұрын

It's fascinating to see these concepts and their significance as well as the caveats involved be explained in such clear fashion. I'm not dissuaded by the uncertainty of data retrieved and analysed. That's what science is: indicate where doubt hides in the numbers, why and what the next step is to figure out a better answer which generates new and better questions in turn. Science is hard for a reason but it's totally achievable when we are honest about the results.

@happykillmore349 19 күн бұрын

Another fine example of Betteridge's law

@karmanline2005 18 күн бұрын

Good job as always, thanks. Extraordinary claims always require extraordinary justification. But, the publicity is good for public engagement, which may help boost interest and even funding!

@Sacto1654 19 күн бұрын

We're still going to need even larger space telescopes to confirm this. Once SpaceX's _Starship_ is operational, we could launch something really big like LUVOIR (Large Ultraviolet/Optical/Infrared Surveyor), which will have several times the resolution of JWST and could better resolve the atmosphere of other exoplanets.

@davidkiss6624 19 күн бұрын

@DrBecky If there was a telescope that would use the mass of our own star or the mass of another distant object to focus, could we learn more about this exoplanet with the gravitational lens effect?

@kedarsharma487 18 күн бұрын

Using our own Sun as a gravitational lens is not viable due to its very high brightness wrt background. So any other thing u r trying to collect data for will be washed out

@davidkiss6624 18 күн бұрын

@@kedarsharma487 Értem, akkor használjunk bármilyen más viszonylag nagytömegű objektumot az említett exobolygó és közöttünk, továbbra is az a kérdés, hogy sikerülhet többet megtudni ezzel a módszerrel? Érdemes az új módszerre fejleszteni új teleszkópot?

@K4elh 18 күн бұрын

If we were looking at Earth from K2-18B what could/would/should the Sigma value of Dimethyl sulfide look like using the same models? Can we estimate that? Basically what's the range of a sigma value where we can reasonably get excited?

@bryanswopes7050 17 күн бұрын

Dr. Becky, can you give us some information about the cars on the shelves behind you?

@GadZookz 19 күн бұрын

How would an increase in resolution improve the quality of results when analyzing the atmosphere’s gaseous content?

@sillyjellyfish2421 19 күн бұрын

Increased resolution means more pixels per same observed area means less noise in data means more accurate data with better fidelity (more individually measured points within the same range of scale).

@GadZookz 19 күн бұрын

@@sillyjellyfish2421 👍🏻

@TheBoxBand 19 күн бұрын

We've achieved so many milestones in human civilization, yet we will be discovered by aliens based on fart we produce.

@t.c.bramblett617 19 күн бұрын

You can't hide a fart forever lol

@Dvpainter 19 күн бұрын

we fart loud here

@alanholck7995 19 күн бұрын

A fart on a planet 8x mass than Earth would be quite the fart.

@pacotaco1246 19 күн бұрын

Never trust a fart

@SSGLGamesVlogs 19 күн бұрын

"Like a fart in the wind."

@tomholroyd7519 19 күн бұрын

8 g seems like less of an obstacle since we have life that can exist at the bottom of the ocean. Pressure is not a huge problem. That's in water, of course

@leoborganelli 19 күн бұрын

Looks like a good nesting place for Dark Helmet ....

@trollied 19 күн бұрын

what would the x2r value be if you just drew a straight line through 0.292 or so?

@EricBurns1 19 күн бұрын

The only way I could see the Hycean model being right is if the planet formed further out from its star and has migrated inwards. I would think this would give it a higher chance of holding an atmosphere since it wouldn't be close enough to have the atmosphere fully stripped away. But then that would be just speculation since I don't know of a way where we could tell if planetary migration has occurred. Especially if this is being done with the transit method alone.

@MrCoxmic 19 күн бұрын

media: life on an exoplanet astrophysicists: really??!

@aspuzling 19 күн бұрын

I'd love to know why different groups of researchers tend to settle on very different ways of explaining the same data. Did the groups that "found" DMS even consider the magma or mini Neptune model or do they just publish the very first model that somewhat fits the data? Is it just a lack of imagination or incentives to publish "big" findings?

@osmosisjones4912 19 күн бұрын

What if K218 be has living moon

@alu.minium521 19 күн бұрын

Feels like the first collaboration really want a square peg to fit into a round hole. Meaning did they acknowledge that there is also a round peg (the mini Neptune model)that fits that round hole?

@Nick-Lab 19 күн бұрын

Why would they not have observed with Miri along with the 2 other instruments the 1st time? Was it scheduling or transit time or some other reason?

@qinaan 19 күн бұрын

log scales of 3rd and 7th graph at 7:30 clearly show the DMS concentration leading more towards plasma life form.

@ldbarthel 19 күн бұрын

The problem with best-fit models is that they only reflect the models you used in the analysis. There is always the possibility that one of the excluded models may fit the data as well or better. The most important point of these early papers is to point to the next avenue of research to either bolster or falsify the preliminary results.

@TomCoutfit 19 күн бұрын

Intriguing video Dr. Bekcy. BUT can you explain something to me? You say the planet in this system should be much closer to its star to get enough heat, but how does this star not destory the planet's atmosphere with the like of solar flares/carrington events etc? Is it close enough where more solar activity could destory any life chance over time? (I don't know the differnece between star types and their solar flare / mass corona event is!). Thanks.

@rnp497 19 күн бұрын

I think we need to accept that the human race would really like to discover life out there. So much so given a few choices we will tend towards the one that favours ET

@keenirr5332 19 күн бұрын

Given that hycean atmospheres are essentially the same as gas planets' atmospheres, wouldn't a hycean world be just as well-protected from flares as any mini-Neptune?

@barefootalien 18 күн бұрын

Hmm... I don't think so. I don't think it'd be about "protection" from flares... I don't think that's even a thing on the scale of red dwarf level violence and orbits that close. Rather, if you have a planet that's similar in composition to (but bigger than), say, Venus, you have about 99.9% planet to 0.1% atmosphere, or about 1/1000th of the planet's total mass that's _capable_ of being stripped by the star. If you have a gas giant of the same mass, it's nearly 100% atmosphere. As the outer layers get stripped, more and more and more just expands to replace it until the entire planet is gone. So, imagine the star can strip one one-millionth of the planet's mass per million years... that would mean it would completely strip the atmosphere of the hycean world in about 1 billion years. To see what we've seen, it'd need to be a very young planet, and either a very unusual capture, or around a very young star, all of which reduce the likelihood of that explanation. In the same billion years, it would have reduced an 8.5 Earth-mass mini-neptune to an... 8.499 Earth-mass mini-neptune, despite having stripped the same amount of atmosphere from each, with no protection at all. It probably wouldn't even change its apparent size even a little, and we'd see... well, exactly what we see, and we'd continue to see that indefinitely into the future, up to a _trillion_ years from now.

@bryanluhning6346 19 күн бұрын

I hope someday everyone will come to enjoy their job as much as it seems you do.

@gcm4312 19 күн бұрын

those are some cool looking car models in the background (McLaren F1 Lego model; looks like another McLaren below it and a Jeep?)

@RandomTorok 15 күн бұрын

Off topic question: Could an object created many eons ago, possibly during the big bang or shortly after, be moving at or near the speed of light? We use gravitational assist to accelerate space craft, could an object that has been around for a very long time have reached immense speeds?

@erictaylor5462 19 күн бұрын

I am certain when (not if, WHEN) we do finally find proof (not just evidence) of ET life, it will likely only be made public 6 months or a year after the actual discovery is made. It is going to be huge news, I just hope no one recklessly makes a claim the turns out to be wrong.

@sirbarringtonwomblembe4098 19 күн бұрын

??? Proof is derived from evidence. Your faith is (almost) touching. How would any discovery be kept secret for 6mths to a yr? Do you think that scientists are controlled by 'them'? If so, why are people like Avi Loeb allowed to trumpet the existence of alien life every time they sneeze?

@user-tc5pl3zw3h 19 күн бұрын

Well, first I want to point out that life in different environments will take on unfamiliar forms. It may not be something we recognize as life because it doesn't include the same microorganisms we expect or is even carbon-based. That means that we have restricted our search to planets that are in a habitable zone for carbon-based forms of life. That means we may miss advanced civilizations that don't meet our limited criteria for what a life form is. Also, it bears mentioning that all data we get from K2-18b is 110 years old by the time we see it. And how long did it take Earth microbes to become Earth humans?

@davidhoward4715 19 күн бұрын

Life anywhere will almost certainly be carbon-based. Because it can form many times more molecules than any other, it is the only element versatile enough to build and sustain living organisms. How long did it take Earth microbes to become humans? Around three billion years.

@CliffordRainwater 19 күн бұрын

Seems like the K star the Orange Star should be the best shot at supporting planets that may have life. It is more stable and lasts basically for ever. What does everyone think?

@sillyjellyfish2421 19 күн бұрын

Makes me think - how about a mini neptune world with life? What if something somehow managed to evolve in the supercritical area of the planet? A gas that acts partially as liquid could maybe work for that. I wonder what the model for that would look like