The Clouds of Venus Could Have Conditions Conducive to Microbial Life
In the search for extraterrestrial life, scientists have turned over all sorts of rocks. Mars, for example, has geological features that suggest it once had…
Astrobiology
Giant Impact Explains Unusual Amount of Noble Metals on Mars
New research has revealed that a giant impact on Mars more than four billion years ago would explain the unusual amount of “iron loving” elements…
Astrochemists Discover How to Use Methanol to Measure Magnetic Fields in Space
A team of scientists, led by Boy Lankhaar at Chalmers University of Technology, has solved an important puzzle in astrochemistry: how to measure magnetic fields…
New Techniques to Detect Microorganisms in Extreme Environments Like Mars
Researchers demonstrate for the first time the potential of existing technology to directly detect and characterize life on Mars and other planets. The study, published…
Astrobiologists Show How a ‘Methane Blanket’ Can Keep an Exoplanet Warm
Somewhere in our galaxy, an exoplanet is probably orbiting a star that’s colder than our sun, but instead of freezing solid, the planet might be…
Discovery Helps Researchers Understand How Life May Survive on Other Planets
Three new studies by University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM) scientists have identified key factors that help microbes survive in harsh environments. The results,…
Biologists Reveal How Long Microorganisms Can Live on Mars
Scientists at the Lomonosov Moscow State University reveal the resistance microorganisms have against gamma radiation in very low temperatures. Average temperature on Mars is -63…
NASA Study Shows Change in Water ‘Fingerprint’ of Comet Lovejoy
A new study suggests that a trip past the sun may have selectively altered the production of one form of water in a comet. Astronomers…
‘Marsquakes’ Provide a Potential Microbial Energy Source on Mars
New research from Yale University shows that rocks formed by the grinding together of other rocks during earthquakes are rich in trapped hydrogen — a…
Study Suggests Habitable Zone Alone Isn’t Sufficient to Support Life
New research from Yale University suggests that simply being in the habitable zone isn’t sufficient to support life. A planet also must start with an…
New Research Identifies Possible Sites of Frozen, Watery Deposits on Europa
A new study suggests that compounds that might be indicative of life may be located within the scarred, jumbled areas that make up Europa’s so-called…
Protective Magnetic Fields Increase the Chance for Life on Earth-Like Planets
A new study from the the University of Washington details how Earth-like planets orbiting close to small stars may have magnetic fields that protect them…
Titania May Provide False Signs of Life on Habitable Exoplanets
New research from the National Institutes of Natural Sciences shows that a previously unconsidered photochemical mechanism by titanium (IV) oxide (titania) can produce abiotic oxygen…
NASA Lab Results Reveal Recipe for Extraterrestrial Vitamin B3
New NASA experiments reveal that vitamin B3 and other complex organic compounds could be made in space and it is plausible that meteorite and comet…
Scientists Discover Evidence of Methane in Martian Meteorites
A newly published study details the discovery of methane in Martian meteorites, a possible clue in the search for life on the Red Planet. The…
Scientists Discuss the Search for Life in Our Solar System and Beyond
Follow along as researchers discuss the search for evidence of habitability in our solar system and beyond during the 2015 Astrobiology Science Conference. NASA and…
NASA’s NExSS Coalition to Search for Life on Distant Worlds
NASA’s Nexus for Exoplanet System Science, or “NExSS”, coalition brings experts from a variety of scientific fields together for an unprecedented initiative dedicated to the…
Astronomers Discover Complex Organic Molecules in Infant Star System
Astronomers from the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics have detected the presence of complex organic molecules in a protoplanetary disk surrounding a young star, indicating that…