Phosphine in Venus’s Atmosphere

Recently phosphine has been found in Venus’s atmosphere.

 

What Is Phosphine?

Phosphine is a deadly gas that can cause fatal side effects including respiratory failure and nausea. You might be thinking to yourself, “If it’s poisonous, why is it important?” You are right, but the presence of phosphine, could point to life forms. 

Even if phosphine points to life forms though, it only appears in 20-1 billion molecules.

 

What It Does

So far in human history phosphine has only been seen in places with life, water, or other organisms. This leads us to believe that Venus may be the home of an extraterrestrial being. Or that we humans could inhabit Venus. “Living organisms should be its sole source” Nature.com says. 

 

Earth also possesses phosphine in its atmosphere, this is what led us to believe that Venus may be a planet that already, or could sustain life. While Earth does have some phosphine in its atmosphere, it is such a little amount that it doesn’t affect us when we breathe it in. The phosphine was spotted by a small research team in Hawaii with the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope.  If global warming gets way too bad on Earth we potentially could move our civilization to Venus. This is for sure a stretch, because scientists have told us that there is no intelligent life on Venus. Even so there could be even the smallest microbes living there. That is what will tell us whether or not Venus is hospitable for humans.

 

Phosphine on Venus

“…potentially, Earth, Mars, and Venus could have all had hospitable surfaces.” The New York Times says. Another roadblock in the process of this study is how phosphine is not the only thing in Venus’s atmosphere. Sulphuric acid is also present. Sulphuric acid is especially damaging to the skin of our bodies, although it also can cause severe chemical burns. Despite being overlooked for so many years, Venus has now come into play as a possible home for our species

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Cites:

Pinho2020-12-03T09:58:00+00:00, Bárbara. “Is There Phosphine on Venus?” Chemistry World, https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/is-there-phosphine-on-venus/4012848.article. Accessed 18 Feb. 2021.
Greaves, Jane S., et al. “Phosphine Gas in the Cloud Decks of Venus.” Nature Astronomy, Sept. 2020, pp. 1–10. www.nature.com, doi:10.1038/s41550-020-1174-4.
Pinho2020-12-03T09:58:00+00:00, Bárbara. “Is There Phosphine on Venus?” Chemistry World, https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/is-there-phosphine-on-venus/4012848.article. Accessed 18 Feb. 2021.