The Astrobiology Graduate Conference (AbGradCon) is an annual, student-led conference to highlight and promote the scientific research of early career astrobiologists.
Attendees of this conference are graduate students and post-doctoral researchers which creates a more relaxed atmosphere for scientific discussions and networking. The conference will be held at the University of Arizona this year from September 14-18th. Abstract submissions have already closed for this year.
The theme of AbGradCon this year is “Living on the Edge: From Interfaces to Distant Worlds”, as seen in this year’s logo. Within this theme, many talks and posters will spotlight conditions where transformative discoveries are often made: water interfaces, catalytic surfaces, mineral–fluid contacts, ice–ocean interfaces, microbe-mineral interactions, and membranes.
Additionally, the conference will highlight work on the planetary contexts that govern the possibility of life and environmental “edges” that shape habitability. At large, AbGradCon will feature interdisciplinary research across astrobiology, astrochemistry, planetary science, geobiology, exoplanets and deep space, engineering and instrument design, origins of planets and stars, and more.
AbGradCon is also excited to host several keynote speakers and panelists. Keynote speakers this year are Dr. Dante Lauretta (University of Arizona) and Dr. Matthew Powner (University College London).
There will also be a panel on various career trajectories in astrobiology, from academia to industry, featuring Dr. Kahleen Craft (Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory), Dr. Marc Neveu (NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, University of Maryland College Park), Dr. Aaron Goldman (Oberlin College), Dr. Solange Duhamel (University of Arizona), and Dr. Ellen Czaplinski (Honeybee Robotics).
We will also be hosting a moderated panel of early career researchers involved in NASA’s Decadal Astrobiology Research and Exploration Strategy (DARES).
For more information, please see our website https://www.abgradcon.org/ We will also be posting conference highlights on Instagram, X, and Bluesky (all @abgradcon).
Astrobiology
