Have you ever wondered if there’s life on other planets? Sure, we see movies all the time about aliens existing light years away (hello, E.T.), but there hasn’t been much solid proof about their existence in real life.

However, scientists have recently found some evidence that could mean potential alien life on other planets. In the clouds on the planet Venus, experts have discovered traces of phosphine gas. And while that could mean a number of different things, one explanation could, indeed, be extraterrestrial life.

“If this signal is correct, there is a process on Venus we cannot explain that produces phosphine – and one of the hypotheses is that it’s life in the clouds of Venus,” said Janusz Petkowski, an astrobiologist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology who worked on the research. “It’s far fetched, until it’s not.”

That doesn’t necessarily mean we’re going to see an invasion of green-headed monsters anytime soon. The gas could be caused by microorganisms, not to mention Venus is still some 150 million miles from Earth (even though it’s the closest planet to us).

Still, it’s a eerie discovery into someone many thought wasn’t possible, especially so close to Earth. In fact, many scientists have put their focus on studying the planet Mars, where methane gas has previously been detected, much farther from Earth.

Venus was nearly ruled out for life since the surface temperatures are hot enough to melt lead and the air isn’t breathable. However, this phosphine gas was found in the clouds, 30-40 miles above the surface. They really may be onto something here!

To hear more about why phosphine gas could mean life on Venus and the discovery itself, check out the video below.

Crazy, huh? Do you believe in life on other planets? What do you think these traces of gas on Venus could mean?