Santa Clara, California, April 1417, 2008 The 5th Astrobiology Science Conference (AbSciCon08), hosted by the SETI Institute, brings together a community of scholars, students, and educators that is as vigorous […]
Journal articles
Posted inGenomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Journal articles, Origin & Evolution of Life
A "Follow the Energy" Approach for Astrobiology
Astrobiology December 2007, 7(6): 819-823 http://www.liebertonline.com/doi/pdfplus/10.1089/ast.2007.0207 A key challenge in Astrobiology is to comprehend life and its interaction with the environment at a level sufficiently fundamental to embrace the alternative […]
Posted inBiosignatures & Paleobiology, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Journal articles, Origin & Evolution of Life
Did Earthquakes Keep the Early Crust Habitable?
Astrobiology December 2007, 7(6): 1023-1032 http://www.liebertonline.com/doi/pdfplus/10.1089/ast.2006.0091 The shallow habitable region of cratonal crust deforms with a strain rate on the order of 1019 s1. This is rapid enough that small […]
Posted inExtremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Icy Worlds, Journal articles, Origin & Evolution of Life
Energy, Chemical Disequilibrium, and Geological Constraints on Europa
Astrobiology December 2007, 7(6): 1006-1022 http://www.liebertonline.com/doi/pdfplus/10.1089/ast.2007.0156 Europa is a prime target for astrobiology. The presence of a global subsurface liquid water ocean and a composition likely to contain a suite […]
Posted inExtremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Icy Worlds, Journal articles, Origin & Evolution of Life, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Hydrothermal Systems in Small Ocean Planets
Astrobiology December 2007, 7(6): 987-1005 http://www.liebertonline.com/doi/pdfplus/10.1089/ast.2007.0075 We examine means for driving hydrothermal activity in extraterrestrial oceans on planets and satellites of less than one Earth mass, with implications for sustaining […]
Posted inExtremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Journal articles, Mars, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Hydrogeologic Controls on Episodic H2 Release from Precambrian Fractured Rocks–Energy for Deep Subsurface Life on Earth and Mars
Astrobiology December 2007, 7(6): 971-986 http://www.liebertonline.com/doi/pdfplus/10.1089/ast.2006.0096 Dissolved H2 concentrations up to the mM range and H2 levels up to 9-58% by volume in the free gas phase are reported for […]
Posted inExtremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Journal articles
Radiolytic Hydrogen and Microbial Respiration in Subsurface Sediments
Astrobiology December 2007, 7(6): 951-970 http://www.liebertonline.com/doi/pdfplus/10.1089/ast.2007.0150 Radiolysis of water may provide a continuous flux of an electron donor (molecular hydrogen) to subsurface microbial communities. We assessed the significance of this […]
Posted inExtremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Journal articles, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Geochemical Constraints on Sources of Metabolic Energy for Chemolithoautotrophy in Ultramafic-Hosted Deep-Sea Hydrothermal Systems
Astrobiology December 2007, 7(6): 933-950 http://www.liebertonline.com/doi/pdfplus/10.1089/ast.2006.0119 Numerical models are employed to investigate sources of chemical energy for autotrophic microbial metabolism that develop during mixing of oxidized seawater with strongly reduced […]
Posted inExtremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Journal articles, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Temporal Changes in Fluid Chemistry and Energy Profiles in the Vulcano Island Hydrothermal System
Astrobiology December 2007, 7(6): 905-932 http://www.liebertonline.com/doi/pdfplus/10.1089/ast.2007.0128 In June 2003, the geochemical composition of geothermal fluids was determined at 9 sites in the Vulcano hydrothermal system, including sediment seeps, geothermal wells, […]
Posted inGenomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Journal articles
A Thermodynamic Analysis of Microbial Growth Experiments
Astrobiology December 2007, 7(6): 891-904 http://www.liebertonline.com/doi/pdfplus/10.1089/ast.2006.0118 The common thread of energy release suggests that diverse microbial metabolic processes can be compared through thermodynamic analyses. The resulting energy and power requirements […]