: Does the discovery of phosphine on Venus mean it is home to alien life? #IndiaNEWS The discovery that the atmosphere of Venus absorbs a precise frequency of microwave radiation has just turned planetary

Does the discovery of phosphine on Venus mean it is home to alien life? #IndiaNEWS
The discovery that the atmosphere of Venus absorbs a precise frequency of microwave radiation has just turned planetary science on its head. An international team of scientists used radio telescopes in Hawaii and Chile to find signs that the clouds on Earth’s neighbouring planet contain tiny quantities of a molecule called phosphine.Phosphine is a compound made from phosphorus and hydrogen, and on Earth, its only natural source is tiny microbes that live in oxygen-free environments. It is too early to say whether phosphine is also a sign of life on Venus – but no other explanation so far proposed seems to fit.What makes an atmosphere?The molecular makeup of a planet’s atmosphere normally depends on what its parent star is made of, the planet’s position in its star’s system and the chemical and geological processes that take place given these conditions.There is phosphine in the atmospheres of Jupiter and Saturn, for example, but there it is not a sign of life. Scientists think it is formed in the deep atmosphere at high pressures and temperatures, then dredged into the upper atmosphere by a strong convection current.Although phosphine quickly breaks down into phosphorus and hydrogen in the top clouds...Read more

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