This week, learn why experts are divided over an exoplanet, see the first footage of a colossal squid in its deep-sea habitat, uncover why Earth is peeling, and more.

Scientists have found new but tentative evidence that a faraway world orbiting another star may be home to life. A Cambridge team studying the atmosphere of a planet called K2-18b has detected signs of molecules which on Earth are only produced by simple organisms.

A team of astronomers announced on April 16, 2025, that in the process of studying a planet around another star, they had found evidence for an unexpected atmospheric gas. On Earth, that gas—called dimethyl sulfide—is mostly produced by living organisms.