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NASA Spaceline Current Awareness List #1,221 16 October 2026 (Space Life Science Research Results)
[NASA]. The abstract in PubMed or at the publisher’s site is linked when available and will open in a new window. Papers deriving from NASA support: Other papers of interest: astrobiology, Microgravity, NASA, space biology, space medicine, spaceline,
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SwRI Staff Contribute To New Ideas About Origins Of Uranus And Neptune
[SwRI] Uranus and Neptune are often considered planetary twins due to their many similar characteristics,…
A Voyage Into The Slow-motion World Of Earth’s Deep Seas
[Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel (GEOMAR)] Polymetallic nodules form at a snail’s pace. They…
Rosalind Franklin Rover Stand-In Tackles A Tilted Descent
[ESA]. A full-size model of the rover tackled slopes, boulders and Mars-like gravity as it…
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
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 were twofold: 1) to gather UK researchers involved in Mars atmospheric science to identify current shortcomings and challenges in the field, and 2) to discuss possible collaborations and future steps needed to maximise the research output from current and future…
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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
Experimental Astrochemistry And Machine Learning Unravel The Formation Of Oxygen-bearing Organic Molecules In Extraterrestrial Ices
[Nature Communications Chemistry] Oxygen-bearing organic molecules, including aldehydes, alcohols, and peroxides, serve as key precursors to complex organics in extraterrestrial environments. Their non-equilibrium formation mechanisms…
A New Method Maps An Exoplanet’s True Shape
[Cornell] Mathematical models have necessarily reduced distant exoplanets to idealized circles – until now. Leveraging observations by NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) and a…
Wavefront-Conditioned Photon Measurements for Exoplanet Spectroscopy: Contrast Limits and Conditional Gains
[astro-ph.IM]. A wavefront-sensor (WFS) prediction can select the photon measurement before detection or condition its likelihood afterward. This matters for reflected-light spectra requiring hundreds of…
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…
Missed Detections and False Alarms in a CNN Technosignature Detector on Breakthrough Listen Data
[astro-ph.IM] Radio technosignature searches rely on machine learning detectors to shrink the candidate pool before a human looks at it. They are validated on held-out…
A Hydrogen Atmosphere Could Keep Exomoons Habitable For Billions Of Years
[Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics] Liquid water is considered essential for life. Surprisingly, however, stable conditions that are conducive to life could exist far…