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In September, an international research team reported that they found traces of phosphine in the atmosphere of Venus. It is a gas that until now has only been linked to processes in living organisms.
Finding sparked imagination: surrounding bacteria
The gas was also discovered in the part of the planet’s atmosphere that is considered to have better conditions for life compared to the hostile environment, to say the least. So speculation about an unknown circulating life form, perhaps some form of bacteria, quickly took shape.
But just as quickly the discovery began to be examined, in the normal scientific order. And now it turns out that a misleading signal from the telescope was misinterpreted in the original study. The amount of phosphine is probably only one-seventh of what the researchers first thought, if it is phosphine at all. There may also be traces of other gas giving similar measurement values.
The last word has not been said yet – researchers are excited
However, the problem is far from complete. And the researchers’ enthusiasm seems unchanged ahead of the new expedition planned for Venus 2025, as a specially equipped measuring probe can provide more information on the amount of phosphine and other substances around the enigmatic planet.
– There are 1,001 reasons to return to Venus, and if phosphine disappears, there are still 1,000 reasons left, astrobiologist David Grinspoon tells Nature.
