Scientists say there could be life in clouds above Venus

Phosphine discovery could spark race to find life on Venus.

An international team of scientists say they have found molecules of phosphine in the clouds above Venus — a possible sign of life.

The findings were published in the Nature Astronomy journal on Monday and point to the possibility of aerial life some 50 kilometers above the surface of Venus, the second planet from the Sun and similar in size to Earth.

The team of researchers led by Jane Greaves, a professor at Cardiff University, used telescopes in Hawaii and Chile to carry out their analysis but warn the results aren't definitive proof of life on a planet that is prone to temperatures of 400 degrees centigrade.

"The discovery raises many questions, such as how any organisms could survive," said Clara Sousa Silva, a researcher who participated in the project. "On Earth, some microbes can cope with up to about 5 percent of acid in their environment — but the clouds of Venus are almost entirely made of acid.”

A number of exploration projects bound for Mars are planned, including a joint venture between the European Space Agency and Roscosmos, but Venus is closer than the red planet, and NASA reports that more than 40 spacecraft have already been sent there on research missions.