NASA announced Monday the selection of industry proposals to advance technologies for the agency’s Habitable Worlds Observatory concept – the first mission that would directly image Earth-like planets around stars […]
Analog Studies
Posted inAnalog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Away Teams & Field Reports, Cryobiology, Dale Andersen's Field Reports, Exploration Gear & Tech, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Microbiology & Virology, People Of Astrobiology, ROVs/Submersibles/Diving, Status Report, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Astrobiologist Dale Andersen’s Antarctic Field Report: 5 January 2026: Preparing to Leave Cape Town For The Ice
Keith The team and all of our gear and cargo made it to Cape Town, which feels especially welcoming right now—warm, bright, and easy to settle into. Over Table Mountain, […]
Posted inAnalog Studies, Artemis & Lunar Exploration, Astrobiology (general), Astrogeology, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Away Teams & Field Reports, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Citizen Science / Open Science, Courses, Education and Outreach, Exploration Gear & Tech, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Missions & Hardware, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, Sample Return, Space Life Science, Tricorders & Sensors
Tricorder Tech For Everyone: NASA’s STELLA Open Science Instrument
Editor’s note: NASA has just authored a paper on a new way for people with a wide variety of interests to use – and build – sensor technology that is […]
Posted inAnalog Studies, Astrogeology, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Europa, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report
Europa’s Ice Thickness And Subsurface Structure Characterized By The Juno Microwave Radiometer
Jupiter’s moon Europa is thought to harbour a saltwater ocean beneath a variously disrupted ice shell, and it is, thus, one of the highest priority astrobiology targets in the Solar […]
Posted inAnalog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Fossils & Paleontology, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Microbiology & Virology, Status Report
Ancient Metagenomics Reveals Subglacial Microbiomes Driven By Oxygen Availability
Beneath Earth’s glaciers and ice sheets lies an aquatic realm where ice, water, rock, and microbial life interact, driving chemical reactions that can collectively influence the global carbon cycle, polar […]
Posted inAnalog Studies, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Caves, Craters, Mountains, Subsurface, Lava Tubes, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Habitable Zones, Mars, Microbiology & Virology, Status Report, Terraforming & Geoengineering
Microbial Diversity and Metabolic Adaptations in Mars‐Analog Lava Tubes
Lunar and Martian lava tubes will offer stable temperatures and radiation protection, making them potential habitats for extraterrestrial life. The Martian atmosphere, containing gases like H2, CO, and CH4, could […]
Posted inAnalog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Cryobiology, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Habitable Zones, Microbiology & Virology, Press Release, ROVs/Submersibles/Diving, Sample Return, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
The Deepest Gas Hydrate Cold Seep Ever Discovered In The Arctic
A multinational scientific team led by UiT has uncovered the deepest known gas hydrate cold seep on the planet. The discovery was made during the Ocean Census Arctic Deep – EXTREME24 expedition […]
Posted inAnalog Studies, Away Teams & Field Reports, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Cryobiology, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Gaia - Planetary Perspectives, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Habitable Zones, Microbiology & Virology, Nomenclature, Systematics, Natural History, Press Release, ROVs/Submersibles/Diving, Sample Return, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
HKUST Launches World’s First Deep-sea Multi-omics Resource Platform Empowering Global Research Into Biological Adaptation In Extreme Environments
The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST), in collaboration with the Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), has launched the world’s first Deep Ocean Omics (DOO) […]
Posted inAnalog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Astrogeology, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Desert Worlds, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mars, Press Release
Mesa Erosion At Mars’ South Pole
The South Polar residual cap (the part that lasts through the summer) is composed of carbon dioxide ice.
Posted inAnalog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Away Teams & Field Reports, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Caves, Craters, Mountains, Subsurface, Lava Tubes, Cryobiology, Exploration Gear & Tech, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Fossils & Paleontology, Habitable Zones, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Origin & Evolution of Life, Sample Return, Status Report
Subsurface Life On Earth As A Key To Unlock Extraterrestrial Mysteries
The first forms of life on Earth were microbial, preceding the evolution of multicellular life by more than two billion years.