One possible approach in astrobiology is to use the range of possibilities offered by the Earth to study geographical niches that could be similar to environments observed on planets or […]
Atacama Desert
Posted inAnalog Studies, Exploration Gear & Tech, Fossils & Paleontology, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Mars, Missions & Hardware, Planetary Protection & Biosafety, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, Status Report, Tricorders & Sensors
Away Team Tech: In Situ Real-Time Monitoring for Aseptic Drilling
Lessons Learned from the Atacama Rover Astrobiology Drilling Studies Contamination Control Strategy and Implementation and Application to the Icebreaker Mars Life Detection Mission
Posted inAway Teams & Field Reports, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Desert Worlds, Fossils & Paleontology, Microbiology & Virology, Origin & Evolution of Life, Press Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Deep Within An Inhospitable Desert Is A Window To The First Life On Earth
CU Boulder geologist Brian Hynek has helped to document what may be a unique kind of ecosystem on Earth—and a possible window into the earliest stages of life on this […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Mercury, Press Release
Unveiling Mercury’s Geological Mysteries: Salt Glaciers, Primordial Atmosphere, and the New Frontiers of Astrobiology
Scientists from the Planetary Science Institute have uncovered evidence of potential salt glaciers on Mercury, opening a new frontier in astrobiology by revealing a volatile environment that might echo habitability […]
Posted inAnalog Studies, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Desert Worlds, Habitable Zones, Microbiology & Virology, Missions & Hardware, Press Release, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, Tricorders & Sensors
Life Detection and Microbial Biomarker Profiling with Signs of Life Detector-Life Detector Chip During a Mars Drilling Simulation Campaign in the Hyperarid Core of the Atacama Desert
The low organic matter content in the hyperarid core of the Atacama Desert, together with abrupt temperature shifts and high ultraviolet radiation at its surface, makes this region one of […]
Posted inAI - Data - Apps - Cybernetics, Analog Studies, Away Teams & Field Reports, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exploration Gear & Tech, Icy Worlds, Mars, Press Release, Tricorders & Sensors
Can Artificial Intelligence Help Find Life On Mars Or Icy Worlds?
Wouldn’t finding life on other worlds be easier if we knew exactly where to look? Researchers have limited opportunities to collect samples on Mars or elsewhere or access remote sensing […]
Posted inBiosignatures & Paleobiology, Mars, Missions & Hardware, Press Release, Tricorders & Sensors
Tricorder Tech: Better Tools Will Be Needed To Determine Evidence Of Ancient Life On Mars
Current state-of-the-art instrumentation being sent to Mars to collect and analyze evidence of life might not be sensitive enough to make accurate assessments, according to a research team co-led by […]
Posted inAnalog Studies, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Desert Worlds, Exploration Gear & Tech, Habitable Zones, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry
Two Decades of km-resolution Satellite- And Ground-based Measurements of the Precipitable Water Vapor in the Atacama Desert
The Atacama Desert has long been established as an excellent site for submillimeter observations. Yet identifying potentially optimal locations for a new facility within this region can require long field […]
Posted inMars
Clay Subsoil At Earth's Driest Place May Signal Life On Mars
Earth’s most arid desert may hold a key to finding life on Mars. Diverse microbes discovered in the clay-rich, shallow soil layers in Chile’s dry Atacama Desert suggest that similar […]
Posted inAway Teams & Field Reports, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Desert Worlds, Exploration Gear & Tech, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Fossils & Paleontology, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Press Release
Mineralogy of a Sulfate-rich Inverted Channel in the Atacama Desert, Chile: Clues to its Formation and Preservation
We have performed a stratigraphic and mineralogical analysis of a vertical transect across a ridge located at the distal end of a system of eroded alluvial deposits in the northern […]