‘Broccoli gas’ can help scientists find life on other planets 

If we ask you whether you like broccoli, most of you might revert back in the negative. But what if we told you that this vegetable you dislike so much has a world-changing impact. Are you wondering how? Well, as it turns out, broccoli emits gases to expel all the toxins within; and now scientists have discovered that these gases can help provide compelling evidence of life on other planets. How fascinating is that! 

Let us put things in perspective. First things first. How does broccoli form these gases? Through a process called methylation. In this process, the toxins present inside broccoli turn into gases made up of one carbon and three hydrogen atoms, alongside another undesirable and nameless chemical element. Once released, these gases float into the Earth’s atmosphere.  

And now, scientists are of the opinion that if such kinds of gases are detected in the atmosphere of other planets with the help of telescopes, they would suggest existence of (plant) life there. Here comes the question why are scientists suddenly so hopeful that such gases might be present on other planetary atmosphere? The simple reason is because, these gases and the way they are formed (methylation) are both much more widespread on Earth that earlier imagined. So, it would really be no surprise if they are found on outer Earth atmospheres. After all, most living cells have mechanisms in place to expel harmful substances for survival.  

For instance, one particular gas named methyl bromide have a high chance of being present on other planets as well, that can in turn help search for life on those surfaces. This gas is also easy to trace considering it stays in the atmosphere for a shorter time but in large quantities than other biosignature gases. In fact, once located, it may reveal that it wasn’t produced that long ago and whatever produced it (any broccoli-like plant) might still be around generating more of it. However, the biggest advantage is that, methyl bromide is most definitely made by something living, in contrast to gas like methane that can even be produced by microbes, volcano or other geological processes. Okay, so what does this really mean? It means that a gas like methyl bromide is mostly formed by biological means, indicating that if it’s present in the atmosphere of other planets, proof of life would be somewhere around too. Additionally, methyl bromide is almost always traced with a cousin gas named methyl chloride, and together they double the chance of finding life outside the Earth.  

Now here’s a more interesting fact. Methyl bromide though extremely common in our earthly atmosphere is difficult to detect, thanks to high intensity of the Sun’s ultraviolet rays. But this new study has revealed that methyl bromide can easily be detectable around planets near M dwarf stars (smaller and way cooler than the Sun, hence produce less UV radiation) or the ones much away from the Sun in the solar system, such as Saturn or Neptune. In fact, planets hosted by M dwarf stars are presumed to have four times the power to detect methyl bromide than the ones in the solar system. But that isn’t all either. Turns out, M dwarf stars are also over 10 times common than stars such as our Sun, making the upcoming research a potential success.  

Interestingly, this study has been published in the Astrophysical Journal by planetary scientists based at University of California Riverside.