First sign of water found on an Alien World

Water has been detected in the atmosphere of an alien world for the first time, a new analysis of Hubble Space Telescope data suggests. The planet, called HD 209458b, is about 70% as massive as Jupiter and is scorched by the heat of its parent star, which it orbits 9 times as close as Mercury does to the Sun. Because of its orbit, astronomers have been able to glean a lot of information – such as its size and mass – about the distant world. n February, researchers using the infrared-sensitive Spitzer Space Telescope announced that there was no sign of water vapour in its atmosphere, now, Hubble observations seem to have revealed the missing water. Astronomers at the Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona, US, did a computer analysis of previously obtained Hubble data taken when the planet partially eclipsed its parent star. Hubble observed light from the host star that had filtered through the outer reaches of the planet's atmosphere. The relatively small amount of light filtering through at about 0.9 microns suggests the presence of water, which absorbs light at this wavelength. But despite the presence of water, scientists point out that the planet's prevailing temperatures of about 1000° Celsius mean conditions would not be favourable to life.

submitted by Shaun A. Saunders