If you were looking for the signatures of life on another world, you would want to take something small and portable with you. That’s the philosophy behind the “Chemical Laptop” […]
astrobiology
Posted inAstrobiology (general), Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Missions & Hardware, NASA Astrobiology Program, Origin & Evolution of Life, Planetary Protection & Biosafety, Reports, Roadmaps, & Plans, SETI & Technosignatures, Status Report
Report: NASA 2015 Astrobiology Strategy Identifies Priority Research
NASA’s strategic objective in planetary science is to determine the content, origin, and evolution of the Solar System and the potential for life elsewhere (2014 NASA Science Plan). Astrobiology research […]
Posted inAstrobiology (general)
Congressional Hearing on NASA's Astrobiology Program
Today the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee helad a hearing that reviewed the scientific methods employed to search for life, examine recent scientific discoveries in the field of astrobiology […]
Posted inAstrobiology (general), Budgets and Policy, Status Report
Prepared Statement by Jonathan Lunine – Hearing on Astrobiology
September 29, 2015Statement of Dr. Jonathan I. Luninebefore the Committee on Science, Space and Technology U.S. House of Representatives
Posted inAstrobiology (general), Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Press Release
Astrobiology Colloquium: Self-Organizing Chemical Systems: From Materials Science to Astrobiology
Self-organizing processes in chemical reaction/precipitation systems can lead to a variety of complex structures, including chemical gardens and inorganic membranes. They key aspects of these systems are the steep concentration […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Origin & Evolution of Life
A Hot Start to the Origin of Life?
DNA is synonymous with life, but where did it originate? One way to answer this question is to try to recreate the conditions that formed DNA’s molecular precursors. These precursors […]
Posted inOrigin & Evolution of Life, Press Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Our Ocean's Cosmic Origin
A new study published in Science looks beyond the question of whether Earth’s oceans can be traced to comets or other objects from space, and instead asks the question: where […]
Posted inIcy Worlds, Journal articles, Press Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Our Solar System and Beyond is Awash in Water
As NASA missions explore our solar system and search for new worlds, they are finding water in surprising places. Water is but one piece of our search for habitable planets […]
Posted inBiochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biophysics, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Origin & Evolution of Life, Press Release
New Study Hints at Spontaneous Appearance of Primordial DNA
The self-organization properties of DNA-like molecular fragments four billion years ago may have guided their own growth into repeating chemical chains long enough to act as a basis for primitive […]
Posted inAstrobiology (general)
Institute for Pale Blue Dots Inauguration Scheduled for 9 May
Learn about planets beyond our solar system, far-flung missions and possible life in the cosmos at “(un)Discovered Worlds,” a one-day Cornell University space sciences conference, May 9, to inaugurate the […]