NASA SPHEREx detects water and methane in brown dwarf atmospheres

Technology Oct 15, 2026

NASA's SPHEREx telescope just spotted water and methane in the atmospheres of brown dwarfs, those weird space objects that float around without orbiting a star.

Brown dwarfs are heated from the inside, and as they cool down, their chemistry shifts to become rich in methane.

Diverse molecules in 37 brown dwarfs

SPHEREx studied 37 brown dwarfs and found evidence of water, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, and methane in brown dwarf atmospheres, with spectra that vary from object to object, way more variety than scientists expected.

Study lead Zafar Rustamkulov said these chemical fingerprints show just how complex these objects really are.