The truth is out there: Scientists want a new mission to hunt for life beyond Earth
The Swiss university ETH Zurich's international Large Interferometer for Exoplanets mission would send telescopes to investigate the diversity of other worlds.
The so-called LIFE mission would study the atmospheres of dozens of exoplanets with a similar temperature, radius and mass to Earth for signs of water and oxygen.
"A single positive detection would change everything," physicist Dr. Daniel Angerhausen explained in a statement, "but even if we don't find life, we'll be able to quantify how rare — or common — planets with detectable biosignatures really might be."
The mission concept is detailed in a new study published in The Astronomical Journal.
The study reviews what astronomers could learn if there's 'no life detected' in future exoplanet surveys, relying on a 'Bayesian' statistical analysis to establish the minimum number of exoplanets that should be observed to get meaningful answers about the frequency of possibly inhabited worlds. Bayesian statistics has to do with determining the probability of an outcome based on other known probabilities, according to Space.com.
There are currently more than 5,800 confirmed exoplanets that exist beyond our solar system. Most of them orbit other stars and the majority of those that have been discovered are in our Milky Way galaxy. But, NASA believes that billions exist.
The research found that if scientists examined between 40 and 80 exoplanets finding no life, they could conclude that fewer than 10 to 20 percent of similar planets host life. They said those conclusions would enable researchers to place an upper limit an estimated prevalence of life in the universe.
'This kind of result would be a turning point,' said Angerhausen, the study's lead author. 'Even if we don't find life, we'll finally be able to quantify how rare — or common — planets with detectable biosignatures really might be.'
Still, they acknowledge that every observation comes with a certain level of uncertainty. For example, the mission could result in false negatives thanks to missed signs of life.
The study authors say specific and measurable questions are necessary to address uncertainty, including 'which fraction of rocky planets in a solar system's habitable zone show clear signs of water vapor, oxygen, and methane.'
"It's not just about how many planets we observe — it's about asking the right questions and how confident we can be in seeing or not seeing what we're searching for," Angerhausen said. "If we're not careful and are overconfident in our abilities to identify life, even a large survey could lead to misleading results."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Indianapolis Star
9 hours ago
- Indianapolis Star
'Eclipse of the century': Lengthy 6-minute solar eclipse is coming Aug. 2, 2027
No, the world will not go dark this weekend. Rumors about a lengthy total solar eclipse may have been circulating online, but the so-called "eclipse of the century" isn't for another two years. A total solar eclipse lasting up to 6 minutes and 23 seconds, at its peak, is expected to occur on Aug. 2, 2027, according to NASA. The total solar eclipse, in which the moon moves perfectly between the sun and Earth and casts a shadow on Earth, will be one of the longest in several decades. For a time comparison, the total solar eclipse that occured on April 8, 2024, lasted 4 minutes and 28 seconds at its peak. The solar eclipse of 1991, however, lasted 6 minutes and 53 seconds. reports the Aug. 2, 2027 eclipse will be the longest eclipse totality until 2114. The eclipse will be visible in parts of Africa, Europe and the Middle East. Unfortunately for American skywatchers, the vast majority of the U.S. won't have a view of it. The Aug. 2, 2027 solar eclipse isn't actually the next total solar eclipse though. That one, on Aug. 12, 2026, will be visible in Greenland, Iceland, Spain, Russia and parts of Portugal, according to NASA. Here's what to know about the solar eclipse on Aug. 2, 2027. The solar eclipse's path of totality will cross over parts of Africa, Europe and the Middle East, according to National Eclipse and NASA. Parts of the following countries are within the path of totality. Other countries in Africa, Europe and the Middle East will have a partial view of the eclipse. A partial solar eclipse will be visible in parts of Maine between 5:14 and 5:19 a.m. ET on Aug. 2, 2027, according to Time and Date.
Chicago Tribune
2 days ago
- Chicago Tribune
Air quality alerts issued across Illinois. But how safe are you inside your home?
Air quality alerts issued Thursday in Illinois because of Canadian wildfire smoke marked the latest bout in an increasingly common summer occurrence. The alert covers 34 Illinois counties designated as having unhealthy air for all residents. Although it is recommended to hunker inside during these stretches, experts say indoor air quality can often be just as bad, if not worse, than outdoor air quality. 'When they're in the home, their windows are closed, the doors are shut and locked, and they think, 'this is my indoor air, and it's totally different than what's in the outdoor air,'' said Ian Cull, founder and chief science officer of Indoor Science, an indoor air quality consulting and training company headquartered in Aurora. 'But homes and all buildings are leakier than what people imagine.' There were two multi-day periods of bad air quality in the Midwest earlier this summer — both due to smoke from Canadian wildfires. In June, Chicago saw three days of some of the worst air quality in the world, and in mid-July, air quality was bad enough for the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency to declare an 'Air Quality Action Day' – when air quality is at least unhealthy for sensitive groups for two or more consecutive days. Thursday afternoon, Chicago's air was ranked worst in the world, according to Swiss air quality technology company IQAir. But staying indoors with air conditioning doesn't offer complete protection — nor does it necessarily mean that your indoor air quality was good to begin with. 'Wildfire smoke contains particles that are so small they can get through ventilation system filters and AC units,' said Susan Buchanan, clinical associate professor of environmental and occupational health sciences at University of Illinois at Chicago. Fine particulate matter is defined as particulate matter measuring 2.5 micrometers or smaller. For comparison, the width of a human hair is about 80 micrometers. These particulates are the biggest and most dangerous pollutant in wildfire smoke. In the short term, fine particulate matter causes irritation of the eyes and respiratory system, with symptoms mimicking allergies or the common cold. Long-term exposure to wildfire smoke is still being studied, but exposure to other fine particulate matter causes a wide variety of health effects, including decreased lung function and heart issues or heart attacks. But even when outdoor air is considered healthy, indoor air quality can often be much worse than what's outside. That's because indoor products like cleaning supplies, candles, and even spray deodorant can significantly worsen indoor air quality, according to a series of studies released by Purdue University in February. Cooking fumes, dust, smoking indoors, and pet dander also bring down air quality. In addition, most homes are underventilated, or they rely on air conditioning systems that recirculate the dirty indoor air. That's why even when a home air purification system is in place, Cull said it's generally a good idea to open doors and windows every day or so to bring in fresh air. 'The whole benefit of ventilation is to flush out some of the contaminants that we've created,' Cull said. 'But then the tables are turned when outdoor air quality is bad. Then, indoor air, despite its chemicals from cleaners and personal care products, ends up being better than the outdoor air.' Air quality is measured on a scale of 0 to 500 by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, with 0 being good and anything above 300 being hazardous. The value is calculated from tracking five factors: ground-level ozone, particulate matter, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen dioxide. When air quality is above 100, sensitive groups are advised to limit outdoor time, and above 150, like it is Thursday, air quality is unhealthy for everyone. According to experts, climate change is increasing the intensity, frequency and reach of the Canadian wildfires. Buchanan recommended that people check the Air Quality Index online every day. 'People with respiratory conditions like asthma, pregnant people, and the elderly should stay indoors in AC,' she said. To keep indoor air as clean and fresh as possible, the Illinois Department of Public Health recommends that people minimize the amount of indoor-air pollutants they use. Chemical cleaning should wait until the air quality improves, and fuel-burning stoves should not be used. When these recommendations can't be followed, especially when outdoor air quality is bad for an extended period of time. Cull and Buchanan said a standalone air purifier is the best ally. Cull said that air purifiers with HEPA filters are the best for improving air quality. HEPA, which stands for high efficiency particulate air, is the highest standard of air filter, with the ability to remove at least 99.97% of the most common microscopic pollutants and particulate matter from the air. This includes pet dander, dust, pollen, mold, and even bacteria. Cull also warned that some air filters are known to produce ozone as a byproduct when they remove particulates from the air. This is most commonly seen in air purifiers with ionizers or UV light components. Dr. Momen Wahidi, an interventional pulmonologist and medical director of Northwestern Medicine's Canning Thoracic Institute, says that hospitalizations only went up a little bit during the last two air quality alerts in Chicago this year — but that doesn't mean that this is not an issue. 'I know I've dealt with this about a month or two ago, again from the wildfire,' he said. 'We're probably going to see this issue popping up more often.'
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Yahoo
Scientists Created an Antimatter Qubit That Could Upend Physics
"Hearst Magazines and Yahoo may earn commission or revenue on some items through these links." Here's what you'll learn when you read this story: The explanation behind the universe's matter-antimatter asymmetry—an apparent violation of a fundamental law of nature known as charge-parity-time (CPT) symmetry—is one of particle physics' greatest mysteries. A new study details how scientists at CERN created antimatter qubits, which could improve physicists investigations into magnetic moment differences between matter and antimatter. This breakthrough—along with CERN's ongoing effort to protect the transport of particles to other laboratories—could drastically improve baryonic antimatter research. The universe is filled with something instead of nothing—and that's a problem. Well, a quick clarification: This unexplainable quirk of science is great news for you, me, and every other living being throughout the cosmos, since it means that we (being made of matter) get to exist. But from a particle physicist's perspective, it represents a massive gap of knowledge in the Standard Model, which is our current best guess at explaining the strange world of the subatomic. The Swiss-based particle physics laboratory CERN, home of the Large Hadron Collider, is at the forefront of exploring this particular unknown, which is an apparent violation of a fundamental law of nature known as charge-parity-time (CPT) symmetry. This nearly 75-year-old theory posits that matter and antimatter behave identically, meaning that they should have annihilated each other mere moments after the Big Bang. But for some reason, matter prevailed. Now, a recent study—led by scientists at CERN and published in the journal Nature—details a new tool in their exploratory toolbox for trying to understand why the universe contains something instead of nothing. At its most basic, researchers created the world's first antimatter 'qubit'—the quantum-powered building blocks of quantum computers—in an effort to study matter-antimatter asymmetry with higher fidelity. This was achieved by the Baryon Antibaryon Symmetry Experiment (BASE) collaboration using the antimatter factory at CERN. Like most things that deal with quantum properties, the main challenge was keeping the antiproton from experiencing decoherence, in which a qubit loses its quantum properties via disruptions from the surrounding environment. The researchers successfully kept the antiproton trapped and oscillating smoothly between quantum states for almost a minute and then measured transitions between magnetic moments using a process known as 'coherent quantum transition spectroscopy.' Although an incredibly complicated process, CERN describes this method like pushing a child on a swingset: With the right push, the swing arcs back and forth in a perfect rhythm. Now imagine that the swing is a single trapped antiproton oscillating between its spin 'up' and 'down' states in a smooth, controlled rhythm. The BASE collaboration has achieved this using a sophisticated system of electromagnetic traps to give an antiproton the right 'push' at the right time. And since this swing has quantum properties, the antimatter spin-qubit can even point in different directions at the same time when unobserved. This qubit isn't destined to run in some hyper-advanced quantum computer. Instead, its role lies in exploring the very edge of the standard model of particle physics. Previously, BASE collaboration has shown that magnetic moments of protons and antiprotons are identical up to just a few parts-per-billion—any detectable deviation would violate CPT symmetry and possibly explain why protons outnumbered antiprotons following the Big Bang. However, these results used incoherent techniques impacted by magnetic field fluctuations and perturbations caused by the measurements themselves. This new technique suppresses those interferences and makes coherent observations that are many times more accurate than previous magnetic moment experiments. 'This represents the first antimatter qubit and opens up the prospect of applying the entire set of coherent spectroscopy methods to single matter and antimatter systems in precision experiments,' BASE spokesperson Stefan Ulmer, a co-author of the study, said in a press statement. 'Most importantly, it will help BASE to perform antiproton moment measurements in future experiments with 10- to 100-fold improved precision.' And this new level of precision is only the beginning. A simultaneous effort known as BASE-STEP (Symmetry Tests in Experiments with Portable Antiprotons) utilizes a portable trap system so antiprotons can be transported to other facilities with more stable environments. In October of last year, BASE-STEP successfully transported 70 protons via truck on a round trip at CERN's main site. This will allow labs throughout Europe—and maybe, one day, the world—to work on one of physics' most puzzling mysteries. You Might Also Like The Do's and Don'ts of Using Painter's Tape The Best Portable BBQ Grills for Cooking Anywhere Can a Smart Watch Prolong Your Life? Solve the daily Crossword
