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On The Foundations Of Anthropic Reasoning: Implications For Life Across The Universe
[astro-ph.IM] With only one confirmed example, namely the Earth, the abundance of life across the universe remains deeply uncertain, and local evidence about Earth’s particular circumstances can significantly shape our knowledge of life elsewhere. Such extrapolation is difficult not only because of this sample size of one, but also due to observer selection effects discussed…
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NASA Curation Community Conversation Webinar
[NASA] On November 2, 2026, at 2 PM Eastern Time, NASA’s Chief Scientist for Astromaterials…
The Atmospheric Chemistry and Surface Interactions on Mars (ACSIOM) Workshop 2025
[astro-ph.IM] The ACSIOM workshop was held in Cambridge from 10th-12th November 2025. Its primary aims…
An ALMA View On Molecular Complexity: Water, Methanol, And Methyl Formate In The HD 100546 And IRS 48 Disks
[astro-ph.EP] Water and methanol are the fundamental constituents of interstellar and cometary ices: understanding their…
Earth As A Potential Source Of Llife For Europa’s Subsurface Ocean
The paper discusses the possibility of dust particles containing living bacteria ejected from Earth reaching Europa and landing on its surface. It is shown that, taking certain factors into account, over a period of 30 − 80 Myr (the estimated age of Europa’s ocean), Jupiter’s moon would have been impacted…
Keep readingDust To Dust: Prospects For Passive Technosignatures As Relics Of ETI
Technological societies are separated in time, not just space — that is the lesson of the Drake equation. Might the best way to seek them be to find technosignatures that persist long after their creators? I present work I and my collaborators have done on the idea of passive technosignatures,…
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Astronomy & Telescopes
Atmospheres, Climate, Weather
Excess Oxygen Stored In Deep Earth Magma May Help Explain How Earth’s Atmosphere Became Oxygen-rich
[Science China Press] The research team, led by Dr. Yanhao Lin and Dr. Ho-kwang Mao of the Center for High Pressure Science and Technology Advanced Research (HPSTAR), together with Prof. Haiyang Niu of Northwestern Polytechnical University and Prof. Wim van Westrenen of Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, found that molten rock can carry more oxygen than its…
Read moreExploration Gear & Tech
Astrobiologist Dale Andersen’s Antarctic Field Report: Preview: Fall 2026 Lake Untersee Field Season
Keith’s note: Dale Andersen is preparing for his second expedition to Lake Untersee, Antarctica for 2026. The first 2026 Field season at Lake Untersee was…
Using Nuclear Technology To Change How We Explore Icy Ocean Worlds: Examples From Nuclear Powered Mission Concept Designs
[Frontiers] Icy ocean worlds represent some of the most compelling targets in the search for extraterrestrial life, yet their exploration is constrained by significant logistical…
Perseverance Mars Rover Sets Off-World Record for Total Distance Driven
[NASA]. NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover has driven farther than any vehicle ever has on the surface of another world. On Oct. 11, the rover’s odometer…
Imaging & Spectroscopy
Capture of Interstellar Planetesimals in Protoplanetary Discs in Binary Star Systems
[astro-ph.EP] Planet formation requires growth over 12 orders of magnitude in size, from micron-sized dust grains to fully formed planets. The formation of km sized…
Radiation Limits On Amino Acid Preservation And Chiral Measurement At Oxia Planum
[astro-ph.EP] Amino acid enantiomeric excess (EE) is a potential biosignature, but its measurement requires sufficient surviving material as well as preserved chirality. We derive a…
Infrared Spectroscopy Of Cyanonaphthalenes Under Interstellar Relevant Conditions And Their Potential Connection With Astronomical Aromatic Infrared Bands
[Astronomy & Astrophysics] Context. Aromatic infrared bands (AIBs) are widely observed in diverse astrophysical environments and are generally attributed to vibrational emission from polycyclic aromatic…
Biosignatures & Paleobiology
Ancient Endorheic Lake Basins: Promising Sampling Sites for the Tianwen-3 Mars Sample Return Mission
[Astrobiology (Journal) via PubMed]. The China National Space Administration has announced its Mars Sample Return mission Tianwen-3 to search for life on Mars. Tianwen-3 will…
Tree of Life Program Targets Publication Of 200 Genome Notes Per Month
Editor’s note: If we aspire to mount expeditions to new worlds and then embrace the task of characterizing and quantifying whatever life forms we find,…
Simulations Of The Evolving Ozone Layer: Implications For The Early Earth, Exoplanets, And The Search For Life
[astro-ph.EP] Over 4 billion years, Earth’s atmosphere has been transformed from a composition devoid of molecular oxygen (O2) to one where O2 is now 21%…