The search for both extant and extinct life within our Solar System and beyond has been a primary motivation for space exploration since its inception.
Away Teams & Field Reports
Posted inAnalog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Astronauts and Explorers, Away Teams & Field Reports, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Cryobiology, Exploration Gear & Tech, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Microgravity, People Of Astrobiology, Press Release, ROVs/Submersibles/Diving, Sample Return, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Antarctic Microbial Mats: A Research Dive At Minus 20 Degrees Air Temperature
Lake Fryxell is located in the McMurdo Dry Valley on the Antarctic mainland. The lake is covered year round with four to five metres of ice, and it has some […]
Posted inAnalog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Away Teams & Field Reports, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Habitable Zones, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Microbiology & Virology, Origin & Evolution of Life, ROVs/Submersibles/Diving, Sample Return, Status Report, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Aurora Vent Field Is A Hotspot For Microbial Hydrogen Oxidation In The Arctic Ocean
Molecular hydrogen (H2) is a widespread, energetically efficient reductant supporting microbial metabolism across most known ecosystems. Although seafloor hydrothermal vents are major energy providers for H2-oxidizing microorganisms, the diversity of […]
Posted inAnalog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Away Teams & Field Reports, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Microbiology & Virology, Polar / Alpine Expeditions, Sample Return, Status Report
Genomic Adaptations Of Novel Halotolerant Bacteria From Extreme North Greenland
Peary Land, northern-most Greenland, is a cold desert region whose soil microbiome remains underexplored. This is the first study to explore the halotolerant soil microbiome of this region with culture-dependent […]
Posted inAnalog Studies, Astrobiology (general), Away Teams & Field Reports, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Desert Worlds, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Mars, Status Report
Astrobiology Mars Analog Atacama Desert As Seen From Orbit
A portion of the Atacama Desert along Peru’s southern Pacific coast, featuring barren plains, rocky cliffs, vast sand dunes, and fertile river valleys, is pictured from the International Space Station […]
Posted inAway Teams & Field Reports, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Fossils & Paleontology, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Press Release, Sample Return
Biosignatures: Detection Of A Biopolymer In 500 Million Year Old Trilobite Fossils
A UT San Antonio-led international research team has identified chitin, the primary organic component of modern crab shells and insect exoskeletons, in trilobite fossils more than 500 million years old, […]
Posted inAnalog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Away Teams & Field Reports, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Cryobiology, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report
Ice Planet Recon: Glacier Surface Lowering And Subglacial Outflow Coincide With Blood Falls Discharge In The McMurdo Dry Valleys
Blood Falls is a unique feature that appears at the snout of the Taylor Glacier in the upper Taylor Valley, East Antarctica.
Posted inAnalog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Away Teams & Field Reports, Caves, Craters, Mountains, Subsurface, Lava Tubes, Desert Worlds, Exploration Gear & Tech, Icy Worlds, Lava / magma ocean / Volcanic Worlds, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Planetary Protection & Biosafety, Polar / Alpine Expeditions, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, Sample Return, Status Report, Titan, Tricorders & Sensors, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Terrestrial Analogs To Titan For Geophysical Research
Saturn’s moon Titan exhibits remarkable parallels to the Earth in many geophysical and geological processes not found elsewhere in the solar system at the present day.
Posted inAnalog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Away Teams & Field Reports, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Cryobiology, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Microbiology & Virology, Origin & Evolution of Life, Planetary Protection & Biosafety, Polar / Alpine Expeditions, Status Report, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Draft Genomes Of Three Abundant Bacterial Isolates From Hypersaline Don Juan Pond, Antarctica
Don Juan Pond (DJP) is a hypersaline, CaCl2-rich brine within Wright Valley, Antarctica (77.565 S, 161.174 E; 1). DJP is one of the most saline brines on the planet and […]
Posted inAI - Data - Apps - Cybernetics, Away Teams & Field Reports, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Caves, Craters, Mountains, Subsurface, Lava Tubes, Exploration Gear & Tech, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Microbiology & Virology, Missions & Hardware, ROVs/Submersibles/Diving, Sample Return, Status Report, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Deployable Artificial Intelligence for Exploration and Discovery in the Deep Sea
Editor’s note: When we start to mount Astrobiology missions to explore ocean worlds we’ll need ways for our robotic submersibles to observe and interact with whatever life forms they may […]