Planet has chemicals needed for life

BY RYAN FLINN

Astronomers have discovered a second planet outside Earth's solar system with some key chemical ingredients for life, NASA says.

Water, methane and carbon dioxide were detected on a hot gaseous planet about 150 light-years from Earth, larger than Jupiter and inhospitable to life, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration said Tuesday.

The planet, HD 209458b, orbits a sunlike star in the constellation Pegasus, NASA said.

"Detecting organic compounds in two exoplanets now raises the possibility that it will become commonplace to find planets with molecules that may be tied to life," said Mark Swain, a NASA researcher.