Is There Really a Massive Blob of Water Floating in Space?

Could a massive blob of water floating in space reveal the secrets of the universe? Join us as we uncover the mind-boggling discovery of a 12 billion-year-old water vapour cloud and what it means for the potential of life beyond Earth. 

Photo Credit: Nasa
"This image, an artist's concept, illustrates a quasar, or feeding black hole, similar to APM 08279+5255, where astronomers discovered huge amounts of water vapor. Gas and dust likely form a torus around the central black hole, with clouds of charged gas above and below. X-rays emerge from the very central region, while thermal infrared radiation is emitted by dust throughout most of the torus. While this figure shows the quasar's torus approximately edge-on, the torus around APM 08279+5255 is likely positioned face-on from our point of view."

Episode Transcript

Hey there, curious minds, welcome to, I Wonder, the show where we explore the questions you've been wondering about. Today's question comes from Tyler, who's 14 years old. Tyler asked is there really a 12 billion year old blob of water floating in space? That sounds wild. Of water floating in space? That sounds wild. Could there really be a giant blob of water out there? Tyler saw this on a YouTube short and wanted to know more. Let's find out, wow.

All right, first let's start with the basics. The idea of finding water in space is actually not as unusual as it may sound. Scientists have known for a long time that water exists in other parts of our galaxy. They found water ice on planets and moons like Mars, europa and even Earth's own moon. But water in space usually isn't in the form of oceans or lakes. It's mostly ice or vapor scattered throughout the universe.

The idea of this ancient, 12 billion year old blob of water floating in space comes from a discovery that scientists made in 2011. What they found was a massive cloud of water vapor surrounding a distant object called a quasar. A quasar is one of the brightest, most energetic things in the universe. It forms when a super massive black hole at the center of a galaxy pulls in gas, dust and other matter, creating an intense burst of light and energy. We have another episode where we talk more specifically of black holes. Feel free to give that a listen. This particular quasar named , is located about 12 billion light years away from Earth. This distance is important because it means that the light that we're seeing from the quasar left it 12 billion years ago. So we're actually get this looking back in time.

And within this quasar's enormous energy field, scientists detected a massive amount of water vapor, the oldest and largest water reserve ever found. How much water are we talking about when we say this quasar has a massive amount of water? We're not kidding. The water vapor cloud around it contained an estimated 140 trillion times the amount of water found on Earth. That's enough water to fill all of Earth's oceans thousands of times over. The water vapor spreads across an area hundreds of light years wide, which is absolutely mind-boggling. To put that into perspective, if we were to somehow transport that much water to Earth, we'd be able to cover the entire surface of our planet several times, with oceans thousands of miles deep. This discovery shows that water has been a part of the universe since nearly the beginning, making it one of the oldest and most widespread substances we know about.

You might wonder just how scientists can be so sure that there's water in a quasar that's 12 billion light-years away. The answer is spectroscopy. Spectroscopy is a tool that allows scientists to study light emitted by objects in space and break it down into different wavelengths. Each element or molecule, like hydrogen, oxygen or even water, creates a unique signature in the light spectrum. By analyzing these signatures, scientists can identify the presence of water and even estimate how much of it exists. So when scientists observed the light from quasar APM 08279+ 525, they detected the specific light pattern that matches water vapor. It's incredible that we're able to identify something so far away just by studying light, but that's one of the wonders of modern astronomy. So what does this mean for the universe?

Finding water in such large amounts and so far back in time is exciting for several reasons. For one, it shows that water has existed in the universe since it was very young, only about 1.6 billion years old when this water vapor was formed. This tells scientists that the ingredients for life have been around for nearly the entire history of the universe Amazing. The discovery of water in places like quasars also suggests that water might be more common in space than we once thought. It's a huge step in understanding how elements and molecules formed and spread across the universe. In other words, water might be present in many places, not just here on earth. Could this mean there's life out there?

One of the biggest questions in science is whether or not we're alone in the universe. Water is often seen as a key ingredient for life, so finding water elsewhere raises the possibility that other forms of life could exist. This doesn't mean there's definitely life around this quasar. The conditions near a supermassive black hole are far too extreme for life as we know it. But knowing that water is so widespread makes scientists hopeful that life could exist somewhere else, maybe. Maybe on a planet orbiting a distant star or in the icy oceans beneath the surface of moons like Europa, which is one of Jupiter's moons. Finding ancient water like this supports the idea that water, and maybe life, could be a common part of the universe. It's one of the reasons scientists are so eager to explore planets and moons in our solar system, hoping to find signs of past or present life.

Here are a few surprising facts about water beyond Earth. Did you know that there's evidence of water on other planets and moons in our solar system? Scientists have found water ice on Mars and on moons like Europa, which orbits Jupiter, and Enceladus, which orbits Saturn. In fact, europa and Enceladus are believed to have entire oceans beneath their icy crusts. Another fun fact is that some comets are made mostly of water ice. When comets pass close to the sun, the heat causes the ice to vaporize, creating a bright tail of gas and dust. It's believed that comets could have brought water to Earth billions of years ago, playing a big role in the formation of our oceans.

With discoveries like the quasar water cloud, scientists are more motivated than ever to keep exploring the universe. Upcoming missions aim to dive even deeper into the cosmos, with both NASA and private companies like SpaceX and Blue Origin leading the way. Nasa's James Webb Space Telescope is designed to search for water and other molecules even further into space. This advanced telescope can look back in time and detect fainter signals, making it possible to identify other water reservoirs and even Earth-like planets with atmospheres that could support life here in our own solar system. Missions to Mars and moons like Europa aim to search for direct evidence of water and maybe even signs of microbial life.

Private companies like SpaceX and Blue Origin are also making major contributions to our understanding of space. Spacex, founded by Elon Musk, is working on an ambitious spacecraft called Starship, designed for deep space missions, including eventual crewed journeys to Mars. Starship is built to be a fully reusable spacecraft capable of carrying large payloads and numerous passengers. With several test flights completed and plans for an orbital flight soon, spacex hopes Starship will make space travel more accessible and cost-effective. In the near future, we can expect regular crewed missions to the Moon, aiming to establish a sustainable human presence and develop technologies that will make eventual Mars missions possible. Unmanned missions will continue to explore distant planets, moons and asteroids, gathering data that enhances our understanding of the cosmos and informs future crewed missions and informs future crewed missions. In short, with ongoing contributions from NASA, spacex, blue Origin and other players, we're entering a new age of discovery, where space exploration becomes a regular and far-reaching human endeavor.

So, to answer Tyler's question, yeah, there really is a 12 billion year old blob of water floating in space. Scientists found it in the form of water vapor surrounding a distant quasar, which is a super massive black hole holding more water than we could ever imagine. This discovery not only tells us that water is incredibly ancient, but it also opens up the possibility that water, and maybe even life, could exist in other parts of the universe. Thanks again to Tyler for such an out-of-this-world question. And remember if you have a question you're curious about, send it our way to wwwiwonderpodcastcom and we might just feature it in our next episode of I Wonder. Until next time, stay curious and keep wondering.