James Webb Space Telescope Could Bring Us Closer To The Discovery Of Alien Life

The James Webb Space Telescope's first images opened to rave reviews from space enthusiasts last week when the cosmos' earliest galaxies were pictured for the first time in the universe's deepest and sharpest infrared images.

While James Webb Space Telescope will continue to awe us with its mesmerising pictures of distant space, could it be that the telescope serves a higher purpose? For instance, could the telescope aid in discovery of alien life in far off cosmos?

NASA

How James Webb could lead us to aliens

Using James Webb Space Telescope, scientists hope to study the "chemical makeup of atmospheres of planets around other stars," The Conversation reported. Their hope? That some of these planets will possess chemical signatures of life.

First off, it would be very narcissistic of humans to assume that no intelligent life exists elsewhere. In the Milky Way alone, there are about 300 million potentially habitable planets, which means they could also host life. From Earth, we've discovered 5,000 exoplanets so far.

NASA

Also read: Meet Three Indian Scientists Behind James Webb Space Telescope's Success

Chris Impey and Daniel Apai from the University of Arizona explained how scientists will look for life. All starlight that has been in interaction with the planet's surface or atmosphere will be first studied for clues about life or "biosignatures." For instance, Earth's atmosphere has a biosignature of oxygen on all light that passes through it, suggesting that life on Earth exists.

It's all in the light!

Most surfaces and material trap wavelengths of light, making all things organic different in colour. Scientists wish to study the specific colour of light that emanates from any planet to learn about the exoplanet's atmosphere or surface.

In turn, this method could lead scientists to gases like oxygen and methane that are associated with life. In its first suite of images, James Webb showed readings from a exoplanet WASP-96b and found that there was water and clouds on the planet, even if the gas giant may be too hot to host life.

Also read: James Webb Space Telescope's First Image Shows Universe's Earliest, Faintest Galaxies

NASA

Next up in James Webb Space Telescope's journey - TRAPPIST-1e, an Earth-sized planet that can be potentially habitable. It's just 39 light-years away from Earth. Webb looks for biosignatures by studying planets when they pass in front of their host stars - capturing all starlight that passes through a planet's atmosphere.

Even then, James Webb Space Telescope cannot explicitly detect life but instead depends on readings from atmospheres of planets to decide which planets may host life. Unbonded oxygen, the "strongest signal for life" cannot be read by the telescope.

Also read: Explained: What Is James Webb Telescope And Why Do People Want To Rename It

NASA/JWST

The telescopes of the future could in fact be designed to find life on other planets. Scientists are studying ways to block bright light coming from a planet's host star to reveal "starlight reflect back from the planet." Three such ground-based telescopes are currently under construction - the Giant Magellen Telescope, the Thirty Meter Telescope, and the European Extremely Large Telescope.

What do you think about the role of telescopes like James Webb to probe potentially habitable worlds for signs of life? Let us know in the comments below. For more in the world of technology and science, keep reading Indiatimes.com.

References

Impey, C., & Apai, D. (2022, July 14). To search for alien life, astronomers will look for clues in the atmospheres of distant planets ¨C and the James Webb Space Telescope just proved it¡¯s possible to do so. The Conversation.