Origin & Evolution of Life Archives

Astrobiology (general), Astrochemistry, Astrogeology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Habitable Zones, NASA Astrobiology Program, Origin & Evolution of Life, People Of Astrobiology, Planetary Protection & Biosafety, Reports, Roadmaps, & Plans, SETI & Technosignatures, Status Report

Report: An Astrobiology Strategy For The Search For Life In The Universe

by Keith CowingOctober 10, 2018August 16, 2025

National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine; Division on Engineering and Physical Sciences; Space Studies Board; Committee on Astrobiology Science Strategy for the Search for Life in the Universe.

Origin & Evolution of Life, Press Release

Physical Constraints for the Evolution of Life on Exoplanets

by Keith CowingOctober 4, 2018

Recently, many Earth-sized planets have been discovered around stars other than the Sun that might possess appropriate conditions for life. The development of theoretical methods for assessing the putative habitability […]

Origin & Evolution of Life, Press Release

Scientists Identify Protein That May Have Existed When Life Began on Earth

by Keith CowingAugust 31, 2018

How did life arise on Earth? Rutgers researchers have found among the first and perhaps only hard evidence that simple protein catalysts – essential for cells, the building blocks of […]

Origin & Evolution of Life, Press Release

Constraining The Time Interval For The Origin of Life on Earth

by Keith CowingAugust 29, 2018

Estimates of the time at which life arose on Earth make use of two types of evidence. First, astrophysical and geophysical studies provide a timescale for the formation of Earth […]

Origin & Evolution of Life, Press Release

Why Life on Earth First Got Big

by Keith CowingJune 25, 2018

Some of the earliest complex organisms on Earth – possibly some of the earliest animals to exist – got big not to compete for food, but to spread their offspring […]

Origin & Evolution of Life, Press Release

Creatures Discovered From The Dawn Of Animal Life On Earth

by Keith CowingJune 20, 2018

arth’s first complex animals were an eclectic bunch that lived in the shallow oceans between 580-540 million years ago. The iconic Dickinsonia — large flat animals with a quilt-like appearance […]

Origin & Evolution of Life, Press Release

A Simple Chemical Process May Have Led To The Origin Of Life On Earth

by Keith CowingJune 13, 2018

Research has shown that reactions of alpha-hydroxy acids, similar to the alpha-amino acids that make up modern proteins, form large polymers easily under conditions presumed prevalent on early Earth. These […]

Origin & Evolution of Life, Press Release

Organic Chemistry In A CO2 Rich Early Earth Atmosphere

by Keith CowingMay 20, 2018

The emergence of life on the Earth has required a prior organic chemistry leading to the formation of prebiotic molecules. The origin and the evolution of the organic matter on […]

Origin & Evolution of Life, Press Release

How Primordial Life On Earth Might Have Replicated Itself

by Keith CowingMay 15, 2018

Scientists have created a new type of genetic replication system which demonstrates how the first life on Earth – in the form of RNA – could have replicated itself. The […]

Origin & Evolution of Life, Press Release

Dinosaurs Ended And Originated With A Bang

by Keith CowingApril 16, 2018

It is commonly understood that the dinosaurs disappeared with a bang – wiped out by a great meteorite impact on the Earth 66 million years ago. But their origins have […]