In an exciting development that could open up broad horizons regarding a matter of great importance to humans, the two scientists said that they had discovered a gas called "phosphine" in the clouds of Venus that was highly acidic, indicating the possibility of microbes and life on the planet near Earth.
The researchers did not discover actual life forms, but did note that phosphine on Earth is produced by bacteria that circulate in oxygen-hungry environments.
The international scientific team detected phosphine for the first time with the "James Clerk Maxwell" telescope in Hawaii, and confirmed this later using the huge "Atacama" telescope in Chile.
"I was very surprised, I was actually stunned," said astronomer Jane Greaves of Cardiff University in Wales, who led the research team published in the journal Nature Astronomy.
The existence of extraterrestrial life has been a major scientific issue for a long time. Scientists have used probes and telescopes to search for "vital signs" - indirect signs of life - on other planets and moons in our solar system and beyond.
"With what we currently know about Venus, the most plausible explanation for phosphine, although it may seem fanciful, is life," said Clara Sousa-Silva, a molecular astrophysicist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a co-author of the research.
Sousa-Silva added "I must emphasize that life, as an explanation for our discovery, should be, as always, the last resort ... This is important because if (this gas) is phosphine, and if (it is proven) that this is life, then we are "We are not alone. It also means that life itself must be very common, and there must be many other planets inhabited throughout our galaxy."
And phosphine, which is a phosphorousatom combined with 3 hydrogen atoms, is very toxic to humans.
Ground-based telescopes, like the ones used in this research, are helping scientists study the chemistry and other properties of celestial bodies.
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