![Life 2.0 mission concept and simulated biosignature spectroscopy. The distributed array observes a common target with many one-meter telescope modules. The example spectra illustrate UV-optical atmospheric signatures and the simulated recovery of O₃, O₂, and H₂O after calibrated spectral co-addition. -- [astro-ph.IM]](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Life-2.0.jpg?resize=1200%2C719&ssl=1)
[astro-ph.IM] Answering the question “Are we alone?” requires atmospheric spectroscopy of nearby terrestrial planets. For an Earth–Sun analog, even the strongest transmission signals are expected to be of order 1 […]
Keith Cowing
Explorers Club Fellow, ex-NASA Space Station Payload manager/space biologist, Away Teams, Journalist, Lapsed climber, Synaesthete, Na’Vi-Jedi-Freman-Buddhist-mix, ASL, Devon Island and Everest Base Camp veteran, (he/him) 🖖🏻
![View of the Hindsight application: drive panel synchronization (A) ensures consistent arrangement of data sources. The playhead (B) is accessible across the drive panel, tying all visualizations to the same timestamp. The fault in question is highlighted across data in red via the fault overlay (C). -- [cs.HC]](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Hindsight.png?resize=1200%2C723&ssl=1)
Posted inRobotics/Rovers/UAVs
Hindsight: Similarity-Based Analytics For Mars Rover Drive Retrieval
[cs.HC] While Mars rover operators plan drives across hazardous Martian terrain and diagnose unexpected faults, the necessary information is distributed across separate systems and often reconstructed through manual correlation and […]
Posted inOrigin & Evolution of Life
Two Origins Of Life
[Heinrich-Heine University Duesseldorf] How and where did the first forms of life arise? These are the main questions driving research at the Institute of Molecular Evolution at Heinrich Heine University […]
![[LEFT]: Schematic of the star–planet–observer geometry defining the phase angle α, measured between the star–planet and planet–observer directions. The hemisphere of the planet facing the star is fully illuminated (gold) at all times, while the opposite hemisphere remains in shadow. The observer sees only the portion of the illuminated hemisphere that is visible at a given α, with full illumination visible only at α = 0◦. [RIGHT]: Illustration of planetary phases along an edge-on orbit, with the star at the center and the observer direction indicated below the orbit. Although the star-facing hemisphere remains illuminated throughout the orbit, the visible fraction of this hemisphere changes with phase angle. Full phase occurs at α = 0◦, quadrature at α = 90◦, and new phase at α = 180 , with gibbous and crescent phases spanning the intermediate ranges. -- [astro-ph.EP]](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/The-Impact.png?resize=1200%2C714&ssl=1)
Posted inAstronomy & Telescopes
The Impact of Planetary Phase Functions On Exo-Earth Detectability With EXOSIMS
[astro-ph.EP] The under-development NASA Habitable Worlds Observatory (HWO) aims to provide breakthroughs in exoplanet science, yet the most effective approaches to modeling the detection and characterization of potentially Earth-like worlds […]
Posted inHabitable Zones
Quantifying Detection Bias And Recovering Habitable Zone Occurrence Rates In The NASA Exoplanet Archive
[Astronomy and Computing] Transit surveys tend to underestimate how often habitable zone (HZ) planets appear. The core reason is geometric: the chance that an Earth-like planet transits a sun-like star […]
![Latitude-longitude maps of column-integrated water clouds (panels a, b and c), outgoing longwave radiation (OLR, panels d, e and f) and albedo at the top of the atmosphere (TOA albedo, panels g, h and i) for Cases 2A, 2B and 2C. The variables are averaged over ∼50 orbits. The dashed white line on the albedo color bar corresponds to the surface albedo.-- [astro-ph.EP]](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/A-broad.png?resize=1200%2C719&ssl=1)
Posted inExoplanets, -moons, -comets
A Broad Exploration Of Climate And Observability Of Close-in Rocky Exoplanets: Applications To Ross 128 b
[astro-ph.EP] VLT/RISTRETTO, ELT/ANDES and ELT/PCS will soon enable atmospheric characterization of non-transiting, small rocky exoplanets orbiting closer than the inner edge of the Habitable Zone around M dwarfs, combining high-contrast […]
![Proposed reaction network for the radiolysis of PCN:N2 ice by 40 MeV 40Ar9+ ions at 10 K. The scheme summarizes the main fragmentation, radical recombination, isomerization, and nitrogen incorporation pathways inferred from the infrared identifications and kinetic analysis. The radicals shown in the "Primary fragmentation" box are representative examples of how reactive intermediates are inferred from the experimental results and do not constitute an exhaustive list of all fragments produced during irradiation. -- [astro-ph.EP]](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Formation.png?resize=1200%2C706&ssl=1)
Posted inAstrochemistry
Formation Of Nitriles And Isonitriles By The Heavy-ion Irradiation Of Propionitrile In N2-rich Astrophysical Ices
[astro-ph.EP] Context. Nitriles are key nitrogen-bearing organic molecules in dense clouds, star-forming regions, and nitrogen-rich icy environments. Understanding their stability and chemical evolution under energetic processing is essential for understanding […]
![(a) The HWK4123 sensor has a standard ceramic land grid array (CGLA) package and measures 31.1 × 36.6 mm. The imaging pixel array is in the center of the sensor. (b) The PHOTRON system is shown outside the dewar. The HWK4123 mounts behind the black enclosure in the top-left corner. (c) The QUEST camera attaches to the output of an integrating sphere, and the sphere receives light from a monochromator. -- [astro-ph.IM]](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Single-Photon.png?resize=1200%2C704&ssl=1)
Posted inAstronomy & Telescopes
Single-Photon Counting CMOS Detectors For The Habitable Worlds Observatory
[astro-ph.IM] The Habitable Worlds Observatory (HWO) is NASA’s current New Great Observatory concept. HWO will observe the universe to search for life beyond Earth. It will need unprecedented instrument stability […]
Posted inAstronomy & Telescopes
The Research Impact Of The Jodrell Bank Observatory And Other Facilities Affected By The UK Science Funding Cuts In 2025
[astro-ph.IM] The United Kingdom Research and Innovation body and the Science and Technology Facilities Council recently announced funding cuts to facilities at the Jodrell Bank Observatory, specifically the e-MERLIN network […]
![Simulated results with NewAthena/X-IFU (400ks exposure, binning factor 3). Figure (a) and (b) plotted the dust model against simulated data (sim. data) along the line of sight from GX 340+00 and GX 5-1, respectively. Figure (c) displays the comparison of three silicate models in GX 13+. -- [astro-ph.GA]](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Investigation.png?resize=1200%2C726&ssl=1)
Posted inAstrochemistry
Investigation Of Calcium Dust In The Interstellar Medium
[astro-ph.GA] Calcium is a highly depleted element in the interstellar medium (ISM), however its composition in the solid phase remains elusive. The detection of Ca-bearing dust has been limited due […]