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Laying Odds On The Potential For Martian Water
[PSI] We know Mars has water ice in its polar regions, but astronauts (and their solar powered equipment!) would much rather experience life closer to Mars’ equator. As NASA looks toward landing humans on the Red Planet, the Planetary Science Institute (PSI) is mapping just where water should and shouldn’t be found, and using statistics…
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Assessing The Susceptibility Of Microalgae To Space Conditions Using Stratospheric Balloons
[Scientific Reports via Xmol] Biological exposure experiments under near-space conditions remain limited by the high…
IMPRESS: A Planetary Penetrator Network for Astrobiology, Prospecting, and Exploration of Mars
[Astrobiology (Journal)] The International Mars Prospecting Ride-Share System (IMPRESS) is presented here as a scalable,…
Probing Primordial Chirality in the Matter Distribution
[astro-ph.CO] Whether parity symmetry was violated in the early universe remains one of the fundamental…
The First Three-dimensional Map Of Thermal Phases In The Local Interstellar Medium
[astro-ph.GA] The thermal state of interstellar gas controls whether it remains warm and diffuse or…
An Interstellar Energetic And Non-aqueous Pathway To Peptide Formation
[astro-ph.SR] The origin of the molecular building blocks of life is a central question in…
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
Small-Scale Mineral And Microbial Heterogeneities Near A Fumarole At The Furnas Hydrothermal Zone On The Azores
[Life (Basel)]. The Azores are characterized by intense volcanic activity, creating unique environments such as fumarole sites, where geothermal gases and high temperatures drive distinct chemical and biological processes. To investigate small-scale heterogeneity within such a site, six visually distinct samples were collected within a 30 cm radius at an active fumarole on São Miguel…
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![NASA SMD ROSES-25 Amendment 65: New Opportunity: C.4 Planetary Science Enabling Facilities [30 JULY UPDATE]](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/SMD.jpg?fit=1200%2C674&ssl=1)
NASA SMD ROSES-25 Amendment 65: New Opportunity: C.4 Planetary Science Enabling Facilities [30 JULY UPDATE]
30 July 2026 UPDATE C.4 The Planetary Science Enabling Facilities (PSEF) was recently added to ROSES-25. It solicits proposals for experimental and analytical research facilities to…
Where Was This Fossil 200 Million Years Ago?
[University of Barcelona] Calculating a fossil’s position throughout geological history is a complex process. In palaeontology and other disciplines, determining a location in the past…
TricorderTech: PerkinElmer Partners With eXXpedition Using Advanced FTIR Spectroscopy
[PerkinElmer], a global leader in analytical solutions that drive human and environmental health, today announced a partnership with eXXpedition, the all-women global sailing research organization…
Imaging & Spectroscopy
Unveiling Neutron And Gamma Spectrum At Martian Surface In Presence And Absence Of Hydrogen: A Computational Study Based On GEANT4 Simulations
[physics.ins-det] Motivated by the interactions of the GCR protons with the Martian atmosphere and regolith in the absence and presence of hydrogen, a series of…
Viking Science
[Astrobiology (Journal)] The Viking missions hosted identical payloads on each of two orbiters and landers. All four missions far exceeded their pre-planned operating times and…
When Two Worlds Collide: How Collisions Between Silicate and Carbonaceous Nanograins can Drive Complex Chemistry
[astro-ph.GA] Our overall objective is to determine how collision velocity governs the interactions between silicate and carbonaceous nanograins. (astrochemistry) We aim to: i) identify collisional…
Biosignatures & Paleobiology
Oil Droplets Remodel Themselves, And Swallow Their Surroundings – Like Living Cells
[New York University] NYU researchers have made microscopic oil droplets in water do something usually reserved for living cells: change shape in complex, controllable ways,…
Methanotrophy Under Extreme Alkalinity In A Serpentinizing System
[Nature] Serpentinization produces hyperalkaline, H2- and CH4-rich fluids that support microbial life and serve as analogs for ocean worlds such as Enceladus. While methane production…
When Polymers Meet Primitive Membranes: How Molecular Cooperation May Have Helped Life Begin
[The Hebrew University of Jerusalem] Researchers have identified a simple form of molecular cooperation that may have helped life’s earliest building blocks become more stable…