--- title: "James Webb Telescope Detects Mysterious Water Vapor Around Alien Planet" description: "The James Webb Space Telescope's latest discovery is a doozy, and it seems like it's raising more questions than it's answering." date: "2023-05-05" modified: "2023-05-05" authors: - name: "Noor Al-Sibai" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/nooralsibai" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/webb-telescope-water-rocky-exoplanet" categories: - "James Webb Space Telescope" - "NASA" - "Space" tags: - "Exoplanets" - "james webb space telescope" - "JWST" - "the digest" --- # James Webb Telescope Detects Mysterious Water Vapor Around Alien Planet ![The James Webb Space Telescope's latest discovery is a doozy, and it seems like it's raising more questions than it's answering.]() *\Image: NASA, ESA, CSA, Joseph Olmsted\* ## Exoplanet Mystery The Space Telescope Science Institute [announced this week]() that NASA's James Webb Space Telescope has detected water vapor near a rocky exoplanet that is highly unlikely to have an atmosphere. It's a startling discovery that raises more questions than it can answer. For instance, does the presence of water vapor indicate that the rocky exoplanet dubbed GJ 486 b has an atmosphere — or could the vapor be coming from the planet's much cooler host star? It's a particularly intriguing finding, since to date, no rocky planet of this sort has been found to definitively have an atmosphere. And regardless, the Webb just keeps delivering the goods. ## Water Works GJ 486 b orbits its host star every 1.5 Earth days, which means it's far too close to be within the star's habitable zone, a region where the presence of liquid water is theoretically possible. That also means it's incredibly hot, with experts estimating its surface temperature to be around 800 degrees Fahrenheit. This kind of heat makes the existence of an atmosphere unlikely, unless it's somehow able to continually replenish itself as its nearby host star blasts it with radiation. Nonethless, the Webb's Near-Infrared Spectrograph detected signs of water vapor, as detailed in a [new paper]() accepted for publication in *The Astrophysical Journal Letters*. But the authors of the study warn that there's still a chance that the water vapor may have emanated from the much cooler host star, not the planet. ## Exoplanet Breakthrough However, if astronomers *do* find more evidence that the exoplanet has an atmosphere, it would be groundbreaking. "Water vapor in an atmosphere on a hot rocky planet would represent a major breakthrough for exoplanet science," Kevin Stevenson, the principal investigator on the recent study and a staff astronomer at Johns Hopkins University's Applied Physics Laboratory, said in the statement. "But we must be careful and make sure that the star is not the culprit," he added. Fortunately, the Webb telescope's other instruments will soon have a chance to have a closer look at the mysterious rocky planet. "It’s joining multiple instruments together that will really pin down whether or not this planet has an atmosphere," Stevenson explained. **More on the Webb:** [*JWST Looks Back In Time And Discovers Oldest Known Black Hole in the Universe*]() ## Author At Futurism, I've often been drawn to unpacking the narratives that underlie technological, scientific and medical progress, with a special interest in areas of conflict and ambiguity that end up setting agendas and steering the fates of both elites and the hoi polloi. I'm a committed generalist, but I often find myself returning to work involving NASA and the private space sector, the effects of AI on media and society, and the mechanics of the pharmaceutical industry, with a specific focus on the spread of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. Prior to Futurism, I worked for publications ranging from Media Matters and Truthdig to Raw Story and Bustle. I'm also the author of "Myspace Scene Queens," a 2024 title in Instar Books' acclaimed "Remember the Internet" series. My work at Futurism has been cited by outlets including the New Yorker, Slate, Nieman Lab, the Verge, the MIT Technology Review, the Sunday Times, and the Daily Beast. I grew up in North Carolina, attended the University of North Carolina at Asheville, and now live in Brooklyn, New York. In my free time, I'm an avid reader and music fan; you can probably find me at a local poetry reading, concert, underground rave, or DJ set. I'm the proud parent of an ineffable orange cat named Mee-Mow. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()