Scientists detect an atmosphere for the first time on an Earth-like planet: “There will be many more”

The discovery, published in the journal Science, marks a major milestone in the search for life beyond Earth. An international team of scientists recently confirmed the presence of an atmosphere around the rocky exoplanet LHS 1140b, which orbits within its star’s habitable zone and is located just 49 light-years from Earth. This is the first confirmed detection of an atmosphere on a rocky planet beyond our solar system.

As for the possibility of life on LHS 1140b, planetary scientist Collin Cherubim, who recently earned his Ph.D. from Harvard University, emphasized that there is currently no evidence of life on the planet.

“An atmosphere is essential for a planet to support life as we know it,” Cherubim said. “This is the first time anyone has found an atmosphere on a rocky planet in the habitable zone of another star.”

LHS 1140b has the right temperature and orbital location for liquid water to exist and may possess an atmosphere with characteristics similar to Earth’s.

What is LHS 1140b really like?

LHS 1140b has a radius about 70% larger than Earth’s and a mass approximately 5.6 times greater. Scientists estimate that between 9% and 19% of the planet’s total mass could be water. By comparison, water accounts for less than 1% of Earth’s total mass.

The planet lies 49 light-years away in the constellation Cetus and orbits a red dwarf star, which is smaller and cooler than the Sun, once every 24.7 days.

LHS 1140b receives about 42% of the stellar radiation that Earth receives from the Sun. That level of energy suggests temperatures could allow liquid water to exist. However, scientists still do not know whether planets of this size have solid surfaces similar to Earth’s.

“What we believe, and what the new data appear to confirm, is that LHS 1140b is a world somewhere between an ocean planet, completely covered by water with oceans hundreds of miles deep, and an ice giant similar to Uranus and Neptune, whose primary component is hydrogen," explained José Antonio Caballero, an expert in the formation and evolution of stars, brown dwarfs, and planets at Spain’s Center for Astrobiology (CAB-CSIC).

Helium detected in LHS 1140b’s atmosphere

Previous observations from the James Webb Space Telescope had already suggested that LHS 1140b might have an atmosphere rich in nitrogen or water vapor. However, the breakthrough reported in Science came when researchers detected helium escaping from the planet’s atmosphere. The discovery was made using the powerful spectrograph on the Magellan Clay Telescope at Las Campanas Observatory in Chile.

“Helium provided clear evidence of an atmosphere on an exoplanet in the habitable zone,” said Shreyas Vissapragada of Carnegie Observatories in California. “It was incredibly exciting to analyze the transit spectra and gradually realize the significance of what we were seeing.”

Although helium itself cannot support life as we know it, its unmistakable detection provides compelling evidence that the planet possesses a genuine atmosphere interacting with its host star. That finding raises the possibility that deeper atmospheric layers, closer to the planet’s surface, could contain denser gases such as nitrogen, carbon dioxide, or water vapor.

As astrobiologist José Antonio Caballero noted, the discovery of an Earth-like rocky planet with a confirmed atmosphere is only the beginning.

“This is the first detection,” he said, “but there will be many more.”

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