Researchers conducting a theoretical study say it's easier to detect oxygen on planets orbiting dying stars adding that scientists should be able to find such potentially life sustaining planets within the next decade.
According to the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, oxygen on planets circulating dying suns, known as White Dwarfs, is much easier to detect than on planets orbiting bright stars similar to Earth's.
"In the quest for extraterrestrial biological signatures, the first stars we study should be white dwarfs," said Avi Loeb, theorist at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics (CfA) and director of the Institute for Theory and Computation.
Loeb and Tel Aviv University researcher Dan Maoz estimate that a survey of the 500 closest white dwarfs should uncover at least one habitable planet. Such planets can be spotted when they pass the dying star during orbit and block out a noticeable part of its glow.
Additionally, when the White Dwarf's light passes through the orbiting planets atmosphere some of that light is absorbed and can be measured by researchers who can detect if water or oxygen is present on the planet.
Through their research, Loeb and Maoz are confident that NASA's James Webb Space Telescope, which is scheduled for launch by the end of the decade, should be able to detect oxygen and water vapor on these orbiting planets within only a few hours of observation time.
"JWST offers the best hope of finding an inhabited planet in the near future," Maoz said.