<ul><li>Scientists from the University of California, Riverside are searching for signs of alien life by looking for unusual gases in the atmospheres of distant planets.</li><li>Their focus is on methyl halides, gases mostly produced by bacteria, algae, fungi, and some plants on Earth.</li><li>Hycean planets, hot, ocean-covered planets with thick hydrogen atmospheres, are seen as good candidates for harboring these gases, and the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) will be used for detection.</li><li>If these gases are detected, it could imply the existence of anaerobic microbes and suggest that life is more common in the universe than previously thought.</li></ul>

Scientists say strange gases could be signs of alien life

Discover more