James Webb Space Telescope detects water near black hole and on exoplanet

The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has achieved significant breakthroughs in observing molecular compositions in extreme cosmic environments. Using its Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI), astronomers identified dust and water molecules surrounding the star IRS 3, located near the supermassive black hole Sagittarius A* (Sgr A*) at the center of the Milky Way. The findings reveal that even in high-radiation environments, molecules like water can persist, suggesting that stars like IRS 3 contribute essential materials to the surrounding interstellar medium.

In a separate discovery, JWST has detected the spectral signature of heavy water (HDO) in the atmosphere of the exoplanet WASP-39b, located approximately 700 light-years from Earth. This marks the first time water isotopologues have been verified in an atmosphere outside our solar system. The observed deuterium-to-hydrogen (D/H) ratio is significantly higher than that of Jupiter or Saturn, which researchers suggest could be due to intense atmospheric escape or the planet's inward migration from colder regions of its original protoplanetary disk.