Scientists spot potential sign of life in Venus atmosphere

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https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2020/09/14/venus-life-evidence/

Source: By Marisa Iati and Joel Achenbach, The Washington Post. 

Excerpt: An international team of astronomers has detected a rare molecule in the atmosphere of Venus that could be produced by living organisms, according to a study published Monday. The discovery instantly puts the brightest planet in the night sky back into the conversation about where to search for extraterrestrial life. The researchers made clear this is not a direct detection of life on Venus. But the astronomical observations confirmed the highly intriguing presence of the chemical phosphine near the top of the acidic clouds that blanket the planet. Phosphine is a simple molecule produced on Earth by bacteria and through industrial processes. As a result, it is on the list of molecules — oxygen being another — considered by scientists to be potential “biosignatures” of life on Earth-sized planets whose atmospheres can be viewed through telescopes....  See also New York Times article, Life on Venus? Astronomers See a Signal in Its Clouds [https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/14/science/venus-life-clouds.html] and article from MIT Technology Review, We need to go to Venus as soon as possible [https://www.technologyreview.com/2020/09/16/1008478/venus-soon-as-possible-phosphine-clouds-astrobiology-life-veritas-davinci/] Also New York Times article, Missions to Venus: Highlights From History, and When We May Go Back [https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/14/science/venus-spacecraft-life.html] and On Venus, Cloudy With a Chance of Microbial Life [https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/19/science/venus-planets-microbes-life.html]

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