Not a week goes by without JWST finding something new and press-worthy. Given the cost of this telescope, this is as it should be.
And weirdly, at least some of the things has found are not aliens despite people’s best attempts to say they were aliens.
Case in point, JWST discovered that the planet K2-18b has the molecule dimethyl sulfide in its atmosphere. This is a hycean world, with a massive liquid-water ocean and hydrogen-rich atmosphere. It would be amazing if this pretty common kind of planet can support life, and dimethyl sulfide made a lot of people think maybe… maybe this could be a hint in that direction.
Here on Earth, this molecule is produced by phytoplankton in the oceans, bacteria in sewers, and it is a source of the stink of rotting meat. These are all biological sources and some really hopeful people are really hoping that the dimethyl sulfide in K2-18b’s atmosphere is also from a biological source.
But here’s the thing: the comet 67P also had dimethyl sulfide and some interstellar clouds, including one of the clouds in the galactic center. We don’t know for certain how it got any of those locations, but non-biological formation mechanisms are the most likely answer. So sure, K2-18b has a molecule that life can create, but it doesn’t have to be formed by life.
So… is it aliens? I’m going to go way nah, man… not this time. Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence, and one stinky molecule does not extraordinary evidence make.