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2d ago

JWST Confirms First Silane Detection in Ancient Brown Dwarf, Recasting Planetary Cloud Chemistry

Low oxygen at formation favored silicon–hydrogen bonds that made silane observable.

This false colour image of the atmosphere of Jupiter was captured by the Hubble Space Telescope (Credit : NASA/ESAA)
Image

Overview

  • The molecule was identified in the atmosphere of “The Accident,” a faint brown dwarf about 50 light-years away that likely formed 10–12 billion years ago.
  • Near-infrared imaging from Gemini South, led by Sandy Leggett, enabled the JWST spectroscopy that revealed the SiH4 signature.
  • Researchers report the finding in Nature, providing the first confirmed detection of silane in any celestial atmosphere.
  • The result helps explain why silicon remains hidden in Jupiter and Saturn, where silicon binds with oxygen to form heavier condensates that sink below observable layers.
  • The team plans further JWST and ground-based observations to search for silane in more brown dwarfs and exoplanets to assess how common this chemistry is.