{"id":1171494,"date":"2026-08-27T02:11:16","date_gmt":"2026-08-27T02:11:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/1171494\/"},"modified":"2026-08-27T02:11:16","modified_gmt":"2026-08-27T02:11:16","slug":"could-there-be-life-in-helium-atmospheres-on-exoplanets","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/1171494\/","title":{"rendered":"Could there be life in helium atmospheres on exoplanets?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/helium-exoplanet-artist-concept-NASA-June-10-2015.jpg\" alt=\"Life in helium atmospheres: Gray planet with whitish bands in its atmosphere and its sun in the distance.\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" class=\"size-full wp-image-555919\"  \/><a href=\"https:\/\/science.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/helium-planet.jpg\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">View larger<\/a>. | Artist\u2019s concept of an <a href=\"https:\/\/earthsky.org\/astronomy-essentials\/what-are-exoplanets\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">exoplanet<\/a> with a helium-dominated atmosphere. A new study suggests that there could be life in helium atmospheres on rocky exoplanets. Image via <a href=\"https:\/\/science.nasa.gov\/universe\/exoplanets\/helium-shrouded-planets-may-be-common-in-our-galaxy\/\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">NASA\/ JPL-Caltech<\/a>.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Could life exist on exoplanets with helium atmospheres?<\/strong> A new study suggests it\u2019s possible.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Experiments showed that helium-dominated atmospheres would be non-toxic<\/strong> to many types of earthly lifeforms.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Helium atmospheres could also preserve other gases associated with life,<\/strong> making them easier to detect by astronomers.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/subscribe.earthsky.org\/\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\"><strong>Science news, night sky events and beautiful photos, all in one place.<\/strong> Click here to subscribe to our free daily newsletter.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Life in helium atmospheres on exoplanets?<\/p>\n<p>When searching for possible signs of alien life on <a href=\"https:\/\/earthsky.org\/astronomy-essentials\/what-are-exoplanets\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">exoplanets<\/a>, scientists tend to focus on atmospheres that might be earthlike. That is, atmospheres dominated by nitrogen, oxygen or even carbon dioxide. But there\u2019s another possibility that has been largely overlooked. What about helium atmospheres?<\/p>\n<p>Helium is the second-most abundant element in the universe. And we know there are <a href=\"https:\/\/science.nasa.gov\/universe\/exoplanets\/helium-shrouded-planets-may-be-common-in-our-galaxy\/\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">exoplanets with helium<\/a> in their atmospheres.<\/p>\n<p>A new paper just released from researchers at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the U.S. and Wroclaw University of Science and Technology and JJ Scientific in Poland, <a href=\"https:\/\/astrobiology.com\/2026\/08\/19\/the-viability-of-life-in-helium-dominated-exoplanet-atmospheres\/\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">examines the possibility<\/a> of life existing in helium atmospheres. Intriguingly, the researchers found that there are no intrinsic barriers that would prevent life as we know it from being able to survive in a helium-dominated atmosphere.<\/p>\n<p>The new study looks at a largely overlooked body of laboratory research on life in helium-dominated atmospheres. And the results are surprising.<\/p>\n<p>The researchers <a href=\"https:\/\/arxiv.org\/abs\/2608.15679\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">published<\/a> their preprint version of the paper  (not yet <a href=\"http:\/\/earthsky.org\/human-world\/what-is-peer-review\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">peer-reviewed<\/a>) on August 16, 2026, on arXiv.<\/p>\n<p>An overlooked possibility<\/p>\n<p>Scientists had largely ignored the idea that planets with helium atmospheres could support life. This was based on two key assumptions.<\/p>\n<p>The first was that helium is expected to typically escape from the atmospheres of rocky planets, along with hydrogen. The second is that Earth itself doesn\u2019t have much helium in its atmosphere. So those were the models scientists had to work with.<\/p>\n<p>But the research team decided to take a closer look at the possibility of life on helium worlds. So they synthesized helium-dominated atmospheres in the laboratory. And a wide variety of organisms were subjected to that environment. These included bacteria, fungi, protozoa, microalgae, plants and animals. The results were surprising.<\/p>\n<p>When the organisms had the essential <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Metabolism\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">metabolic<\/a> requirements \u2013 the chemical processes in your body that change food into energy and build or repair cells \u2013 then they were able to tolerate and survive in the helium atmosphere.<\/p>\n<p>No barriers to life<\/p>\n<p>Overall, the helium did not present any barriers to life. In fact, there was no demonstrated toxicity and no fundamental barrier to metabolism, cell division, photosynthesis, nitrogen fixation or coordinated multicellular activity, including in humans. This suggests that life could survive and even thrive on planets with helium atmospheres.<\/p>\n<p>And it\u2019s seemingly because helium is chemically inert. Whether or not it would actually help life flourish is another question. But it won\u2019t hamper or destroy it.<\/p>\n<p>This is also good news for scientists trying to detect signs of life in helium atmospheres. The helium won\u2019t destroy any <a href=\"https:\/\/astrobiology.nasa.gov\/education\/alp\/what-is-a-biosignature\/\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">biosignature<\/a> gases present in the atmosphere. And it won\u2019t obscure their spectral signatures. In fact, helium-dominated atmospheres also have low mean molecular weights and large scale heights. This actually strengthens spectral features in transmission and improves remote detectability.<\/p>\n<p>Helium could help scientists find alien life<\/p>\n<p>Not only does this show alien life could exist in a helium atmosphere, it could help scientists actually find it. As the paper <a href=\"https:\/\/arxiv.org\/pdf\/2608.15679\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">concludes<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>The possibility of helium-dominated, temperate exoplanet atmospheres asks us to widen a familiar assumption: that life-bearing atmospheres must resemble Earth\u2019s in their bulk composition. Helium contributes little chemistry of its own, yet that very inertness allows the gases required by life to coexist within a stable atmospheric envelope, while its low molecular weight may make their spectral signatures unusually accessible.<\/p>\n<p>The fact that such diverse forms of life can survive, metabolize and reproduce under helium-dominated conditions supports the inclusion of helium-dominated exoplanets among the targets in the search for life beyond Earth.<\/p>\n<p>The convergence of atmospheric-evolution models, the first observations of helium around a <a href=\"https:\/\/earthsky.org\/space\/habitable-zone-world-exoplanet-definition\/\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">habitable-zone<\/a> rocky planet and decades of laboratory evidence establishes that helium is not an exotic obstacle to life and might in fact enable the first biosignature gas detection on a rocky world in our galaxy.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/LHS-1140b-artists-concept-exoplanet-July-16-2026-full-size-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"Planet with a reddish haze around it. Its sun and another planet in the distance.\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" class=\"size-large wp-image-552782\"  \/>Last month, researchers <a href=\"https:\/\/earthsky.org\/space\/1st-atmosphere-detected-on-rocky-habitable-zone-exoplanet-lhs-1140-b\/\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">reported<\/a> detecting helium escaping from exoplanet LHS 1140 b. That means it must have an atmosphere, but scientists don\u2019t yet know what other gases are in it. This is an artist\u2019s concept of the planet in question. Image via Melissa Weiss\/ <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cfa.harvard.edu\/news\/first-atmosphere-detected-habitable-zone-rocky-world\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">CfA<\/a>.<br \/>\nLeaking helium reveals atmosphere on rocky exoplanet<\/p>\n<p>Last month, scientists <a href=\"https:\/\/earthsky.org\/space\/1st-atmosphere-detected-on-rocky-habitable-zone-exoplanet-lhs-1140-b\/\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">found<\/a> the first strong evidence for an atmosphere on a rocky planet in the habitable zone of its star. The planet, LHS 1140 b, is a <a href=\"https:\/\/earthsky.org\/space\/super-earth-mini-neptune-and-sub-neptune-exoplanets-definitions\/\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">super-Earth<\/a> exoplanet <a href=\"https:\/\/earthsky.org\/astronomy-essentials\/how-far-is-a-light-year\/\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">48 light-years<\/a> away. It orbits a <a href=\"https:\/\/earthsky.org\/astronomy-essentials\/what-is-a-red-dwarf-star-most-common\/\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">red dwarf<\/a> star.<\/p>\n<p>Scientists detected helium leaking from this world. The leaking helium means the planet must have an atmosphere. But scientists don\u2019t know yet what the other gases are in that atmosphere.<\/p>\n<p>In 2018, astronomers <a href=\"https:\/\/earthsky.org\/space\/exoplanet-hat-p-11b-helium-atmosphere-inflated-like-a-balloon\/\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">reported<\/a> finding an exoplanet \u2013 HAT-P-11b \u2013 whose helium atmosphere is extended or puffed out, kind of like a child\u2019s balloon.<\/p>\n<p>Bottom line: Is life in helium atmospheres on exoplanets possible? A new study says that there are no barriers to life on worlds with helium-dominated atmospheres.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/arxiv.org\/abs\/2608.15679\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">Source: The Viability of Life in Helium-Dominated Exoplanet Atmospheres<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/astrobiology.com\/2026\/08\/19\/the-viability-of-life-in-helium-dominated-exoplanet-atmospheres\/\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">Via Astrobiology<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/earthsky.org\/space\/1st-atmosphere-detected-on-rocky-habitable-zone-exoplanet-lhs-1140-b\/\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">Read more: 1st atmosphere detected on Earth-like, habitable-zone world<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/earthsky.org\/space\/exoplanet-hat-p-11b-helium-atmosphere-inflated-like-a-balloon\/\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">Read more: Exoplanet\u2019s helium atmosphere is inflated like a balloon<\/a><\/p>\n<p>                    Paul Scott Anderson<br \/>\n                    <a href=\"https:\/\/earthsky.org\/author\/paul-scott-anderson\/\" class=\"post-author-link\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">View Articles<\/a><\/p>\n<p>                    About the Author:<\/p>\n<p>Paul Scott Anderson has had a passion for space exploration that began when he was a child when he watched Carl Sagan\u2019s Cosmos. He studied English, writing, art and computer\/publication design in high school and college. He later started his blog The Meridiani Journal in 2005, which was later renamed Planetaria. He also later started the blog Fermi Paradoxica, about the search for life elsewhere in the universe.&#13;<br \/>\n&#13;<br \/>\nWhile interested in all aspects of space exploration, his primary passion is planetary science and SETI. In 2011, he started writing about space on a freelance basis with Universe Today. He has also written for SpaceFlight Insider and AmericaSpace and has also been published in The Mars Quarterly. He also did some supplementary writing for the iOS app Exoplanet.&#13;<br \/>\n&#13;<br \/>\nHe has been writing for EarthSky since 2018, and also assists with proofing and social media.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"View larger. | Artist\u2019s concept of an exoplanet with a helium-dominated atmosphere. A new study suggests that there&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1171495,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[3844],"tags":[5633,74421,317791,70,413,16,15],"class_list":["post-1171494","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-space","tag-exoplanets","tag-habitability","tag-life-in-helium-atmospheres","tag-science","tag-space","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/117165051881632545","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1171494","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1171494"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1171494\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1171495"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1171494"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1171494"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1171494"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}