Scientists using data from NASA’s Curiosity rover measured the total organic carbon – a key component in the molecules of life – in Martian rocks for the first time.
Tricorders & Sensors
Posted inTricorders & Sensors
NASA Biofinder Detects Biological Remains In Green River Fish Fossils From Eocene Epoch At Video Speed
The “Search for life”, which may be extinct or extant on other planetary bodies is one of the major goals of NASA planetary exploration missions. Finding such evidence of biological […]
Posted inBiosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Habitable Zones, Press Release, Tricorders & Sensors
New Color Catalog Aids Hunt For Life On Frozen Worlds
Aided by microbes found in the subarctic conditions of Canada’s Hudson Bay, an international team of scientists has created the first color catalog of icy planet surface signatures to uncover […]
Posted inBiosignatures & Paleobiology, Exploration Gear & Tech, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Nanotechnology & SynBio, Status Report, Tricorders & Sensors
Assessing Planetary Complexity and Potential Agnostic Biosignatures Using Epsilon Machines
We present a new approach to exoplanet characterisation using techniques from complexity science, with potential applications to biosignature detection.
Posted inIcy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Press Release, Tricorders & Sensors
Near-Infrared Reflectance Spectroscopy Of Sublimating Salty Ice Analogues. Implications For Icy Moons
The composition of the surface of the Galilean icy moons has been debated since the Galileo mission. Several chemistries have been proposed to explain the composition of the non-icy component […]
Posted inBiosignatures & Paleobiology, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Missions & Hardware, Press Release, Space Life Science, Tricorders & Sensors
Spectrum Instrument Captures Images of Fluorescent Proteins Expressed in Biological Cells
Understanding which genes are expressed in biological cells is key to understanding how biological organisms respond and adapt to the stresses of spaceflight. This knowledge will help future space researchers […]
Posted inBiosignatures & Paleobiology, Press Release, Tricorders & Sensors
NOAA Satellites See Bioluminescence From Orbit
A recent study led by the Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere (CIRA), a NOAA partner located at Colorado State University in Ft. Collins. Co., found that satellites from […]
Posted inGenomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Gravitational Biology, Space Agriculture, Space Life Science, Space Stations, Status Report, Tricorders & Sensors
Tricorder Tech: MinION Sequencing Platform Effectively Detects Transcriptional Activity of Plant Microbes
Healthy plants are vital for successful, long-duration missions in space, as they provide the crew with life support, food production, and psychological benefits.
Posted inAtmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Press Release, Tricorders & Sensors
Vegetation Of Planet Earth: Researchers Publish Unique Database As Open Access
It’s a treasure trove of data: the global geodatabase of vegetation plots “sPlotOpen” is now freely accessible. It contains data on vegetation from 114 countries and from all climate zones […]
Posted inBiosignatures & Paleobiology, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Press Release, Tricorders & Sensors
Scientists Develop New Molecular Tool To Detect Alien Life
While scientists know the discovery of alien life would be a game-changing, interstellar event for humanity, the search to date has been unsuccessful. But now, they have a new tool […]