Modern astronomers do not have the tools to search for extraterrestrial life
Humanity is since ancient times obsessed with the search of aliens, but still compelling evidence for the existence of extraterrestrial life there. The main feature of the habitability of the planet is now considered its presence in the atmosphere of oxygen and methane, since the first released in the process of photosynthesis, and the second - one of the main waste products of microorganisms. Each of these gases may be present in the atmosphere without the presence of life on the planet, but if the methane and oxygen are not produced continuously, when reaching a certain concentration they will react, after which releases carbon dioxide and water, so that if the planet is lifeless, a combination of methane and oxygen in the atmosphere is very rare.
Employees of the University of Toronto, led by Hanno Rein found out that if the satellite is present in the atmosphere of methane, and the planet's atmosphere - oxygen (or vice versa), the astronomical equipment perceives this as a signal that the planet's atmosphere contains both gases. Thus, astronomers can not accurately determine whether there is on the planet, both gas, or they are produced independently from each other in the two neighboring celestial bodies.
To find the supposedly inhabited planet, scientists need to find a star like the sun, and then make sure that the so-called habitable zone of its orbit has at least one planet on which water may be present. By analyzing the light that is reflected by the atmosphere of this celestial body, and then comparing it with the radiation of the star, the astronomers determined relatively accurately the chemical composition of the planet's atmosphere, but Rein says that this method needs to be improved:
«Even if we develop ways to find the satellites of extrasolar planets, we can not define the boundary between their atmosphere and the planet's atmosphere, considering how little light is available to study».
blockquote> Thus, an astronomer believes that at this stage of Earth technology it is not possible to overcome the fundamental limitation, due to which the amount of light reaching the earth is fotoshumom impossible to reliably determine whether an extrasolar planet for the origin and development of life, or not .
In his study Hanno Rein I studied only Earth-like planets orbiting orbiting stars similar to the Sun, but the findings suggest that scientists need to broaden the scope of research and work on methods. David Cullen, a member of the University of Cranfield (county Bedvordshir, United Kingdom) proves the value of the work of the Rhine: "This study outlined the problem that we have to take into account when interpreting the data obtained with exoplanets." More information about the results of Hanno Reina is available in one of the issues of the journal «Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences».
via factroom.ru
