An Earth-size exoplanet 40 light years away called TRAPPIST-1 e, at the lower right in this illustration, could have an atmosphere capable of sustaining liquid water. NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Joseph Olmsted (STScI)

Astronomers might be close to confirming the presence of an Earth-like atmosphere on an exoplanet for the first time, if more detailed analyses verify preliminary observations from the James Webb Space Telescope.

The planet is part of a planetary system about 40 light-years away from Earth called TRAPPIST-1, which five Belgian astronomers discovered in 2016 and named after their favorite beer . The system has been heavily studied ever since.

“As a planetary system, it’s as alien as it gets,” said Néstor Espinoza, an astronomer at the Space Telescope Science Institute in B

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