Hints of life ...

The graph shows the observed transmission spectrum of the habitable zone exoplanet K2-18 b using the JWST MIRI spectrograph. The image behind the graph is an illustration of a hycean planet orbiting a red dwarf star. Credit: A. Smith, N. Madhusudhan (University of Cambridge)

Yours truly has always thought life is everywhere because the laws of physics appear to be consistent throughout the  universe as far as we know and ... life is incredibly resilient in ways boggling the mind. With this in mind, Webb just made a most interesting discovery without question.

Using data from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), the astronomers, led by the University of Cambridge, have detected the chemical fingerprints of dimethyl sulfide (DMS) and/or dimethyl disulfide (DMDS), in the atmosphere of the exoplanet K2-18b, which orbits its star in the habitable zone.

On Earth, DMS and DMDS are only produced by life, primarily microbial life such as marine phytoplankton. While an unknown chemical process may be the source of these molecules in K2-18b's atmosphere, the results are the strongest evidence yet that life may exist on a planet outside our solar system.

The observations have reached the 'three-sigma' level of statistical significance—meaning there is a 0.3% probability that they occurred by chance. To reach the accepted classification for scientific discovery, the observations would have to cross the five-sigma threshold, meaning there would be below a 0.00006% probability they occurred by chance.

This illustration shows what exoplanet K2-18 b could look like based on science data. K2-18 b, an exoplanet 8.6 times as massive as Earth, orbits the cool dwarf star K2-18 in the habitable zone and lies 120 light years from Earth. A new investigation with NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope into K2-18 b, an exoplanet 8.6 times as massive as Earth, has revealed the presence of carbon-bearing molecules including methane and carbon dioxide. The abundance of methane and carbon dioxide, and shortage of ammonia, support the hypothesis that there may be a water ocean underneath a hydrogen-rich atmosphere in K2-18 b. In this illustration, the exoplanet K2-18 c is shown
between K2-18 b and its star.

Interesting indeed ...