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Is the bar higher for scientific claims of alien life?

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Recently, scientists claimed the strongest evidence’ of life on a distant exoplanet a world outside our solar system.

But does the nature of the search for extraterrestrial life mean that extraordinary claims require even more extraordinary evidence? We’ve seen groundbreaking evidence in this search beforehand, from claims of biosignatures in Venus ’s atmosphere to NASA rovers finding “leopard spots” a potential sign of past microbial activity in a Martian rock.

Much of the data touted as evidence for extraterrestrial life comes from light years away, via one instrument, and without any in situ samples.

For now, the claims about K2-18 b remain compelling but inconclusive.

Each new observation adds to a growing body of knowledge about the universe and our place in it.