According to a news release from NASA, signs of water have been discovered on five alien planets. The signs of water were spotted utilizing the space agency’s Hubble Space Telescope. Astronomers estimate that there are at least 100 billion exoplanets in the Milky Way galaxy alone.

The existence of atmospheric water was documented earlier on a few exoplanets circling stars beyond our solar system, but this is the first research to conclusively determine and examine in contrast the profiles and intensities of these signatures on several alien worlds.

The five exoplanets — WASP-17b, HD209458b, WASP-12b, WASP-19b and XO-1b — circle nearby stars. The intensities of their water signatures differed. WASP-17b and HD209458b had the healthiest signals. The signatures for the other three alien planets are also in keeping with the presence of water.

“We’re very confident that we see a water signature for multiple planets,” noted lead author Avi Mandell, a planetary scientist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, in a statement. “This work really opens the door for comparing how much water is present in atmospheres on different kinds of exoplanets, for example hotter versus cooler ones.”

The work was conducted as part of a census of alien planet atmospheres spearheaded by L. Drake Deming of the University of Maryland. The researchers utilized Hubble’s Wide Field Camera 3 to investigate the fine points of absorption of light through the planets’ atmospheres. The data was collected in a range of infrared wavelengths where the water signature would be detectable.

Researchers examined in contrast the shapes and strengths of the absorption profiles, and the regularity of the signals led them to believe that they detected water. The observations exemplify Hubble’s stellar performance during exoplanet investigation.

The researchers utilized a new method with longer exposure times, which enhanced the sensitivity of their measurements.

The water signatures were all less distinct than anticipated, and the astronomers believe this is because a layer of haze or dust covers each of the five alien planets. According to the astronomers, the five planets are hot Jupiters, massive planets that circle close to their host stars. The astronomers didn’t expect to find that all five planets looked hazy. However, they noted that other astronomers are discovering proof of haze around exoplanets.

According to NASA, Hubble’s Wide Field Camera 3 has the unique ability to look into the atmospheres of alien planets residing at great distances from Earth. This type of work can be conducted only if the exoplanets are observed while they are moving in front of their stars.

The findings for WASP-12b, WASP-17b and WASP-19b were described in greater detail by Mandell and team in the Astrophysical Journal on December 3, while the findings for HD209458b and XO-1b were published by Deming and team on September 10 in the same journal.

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