Before they take the long journey to another planet, humans will have to find the right place to land. New findings from a University of Mississippi researcher may point to […]
Away Team
Posted inAway Teams & Field Reports, Exploration Gear & Tech, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Press Release, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, ROVs/Submersibles/Diving, Sample Return, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Ocean Planet Expedition: Robots Map Unexplored Depths
Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUV) from the University of Sydney has taken a deep dive in the oceans surrounding Norfolk Island on an scientific expedition to document previously unexplored reefs.
Posted inAnalog Studies, Artemis & Lunar Exploration, Astronauts and Explorers, Away Teams & Field Reports, Exploration Gear & Tech, Life Support Systems, People Of Astrobiology, Space Physiology & Medicine, Status Report
Predicting Exploration Crew Medical Officer Training Needs: Applying Evidence-Based Predictive Analytics to Space Medicine Training
Introduction: Predictive analytics may be a useful adjunct to identify training needs for exploration class medical officers onboard deep space vehicles.
Posted inArctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Astropharmacy / Biotechnology, Commercial & Private Sector, Exploration Gear & Tech, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Habitable Zones, Missions & Hardware, Press Release
Basecamp Research Announces Breakthrough Discovery of Over One Million New Species
Yielding Enormous New Database Purpose-Built for Generative Foundation Models in Biology Basecamp Research, an AI company dedicated to using nature to solve the most pressing challenges in the life sciences, […]
![Darkening of the Global Ocean. (A) The rate change (units per year) in the diffuse attenuation coefficient for downwelling irradiance at 490 nm [ΔKd(490)] measured from MODIS Aqua between 2003 and 2022 in 9 km resolution (CRS: World Mollweide, ESRI:54009). Reds indicate regions where Kd(490) is increasing (oceans are getting darker), while blues indicate regions where Kd(490) is decreasing (oceans are getting lighter). White indicates regions where there was no statistically significant change in Kd(490) over the period 2003–2022. Values of ΔKd(490) were derived for each 9 km resolution pixel using quantile regression to the median performed on the fitted values of an Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average (ARIMA) model of annual averaged Kd(490) data. (B) International Hydrographic Office sea regions ranked according to the percentage of their area over which Kd(490) is increasing. Numbers inset above bars give the absolute area where Kd(490) is increasing in 10,000 km2. Raw data are presented in Table S4. Areas were calculated in CRS World Mercator (ESRI:54004). -- Global Change Biology](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Water-Planet-Dynamics-Darkening.png?resize=1200%2C719&ssl=1)
Posted inAway Teams & Field Reports, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Gaia - Planetary Perspectives, Habitable Zones, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, ROVs/Submersibles/Diving, Status Report, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Water Planet Dynamics: Darkening Of Earth’s Global Ocean
The photic zones of the oceans—where sunlight and moonlight drive ecological interactions—are one of the most productive habitats on the planet and fundamental to the maintenance of healthy global biogeochemical […]
Posted inAnalog Studies, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Caves, Craters, Mountains, Subsurface, Lava Tubes, Exploration Gear & Tech, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Habitable Zones, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Sample Return, Status Report, Tricorders & Sensors
Tricorder Tech: The Development and Demonstration of the Portable Acousto‐Optic Spectrometer for Astrobiology in Cave Environments
Planetary caves are desirable environments for the search for biosignatures corresponding to extant or extinct extraterrestrial life due to the protection they offer from surface-level solar radiation and ionizing particles.
Posted inAway Teams & Field Reports, Budgets and Policy, Career Opportunities, Citizen Science / Open Science, Conferences and Meetings, Courses, Education and Outreach, Press Release, Space Life Science
NASA 2025 Virtual Space Biosciences Training Course: STAR (Spaceflight Technology, Applications, and Research)
Call for Applications
Posted inAway Teams & Field Reports, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Caves, Craters, Mountains, Subsurface, Lava Tubes, Exploration Gear & Tech, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Habitable Zones, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Lava / magma ocean / Volcanic Worlds, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Press Release, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, ROVs/Submersibles/Diving, Sample Return, Tricorders & Sensors, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Ocean Planet Exploration: Alvin Crew Witnesses Seafloor Eruption On The East Pacific Rise
Scientists diving in the human-occupied vehicle Alvin recently witnessed a rare but predicted seafloor eruption along the mid-ocean ridge axis at 9°50’N on the East Pacific Rise.
Posted inArctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Away Teams & Field Reports, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Caves, Craters, Mountains, Subsurface, Lava Tubes, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Lava / magma ocean / Volcanic Worlds, Microbiology & Virology, Polar / Alpine Expeditions, Press Release, Sample Return
Studying Microbes On Mt. Erebus, Antarctica
Earth Sciences Ph.D. student, Caleb Rosen, traveled to Mt. Erebus, Antarctica in Nov ’23 and Nov ’24 with an international research team based at the Thermophile Research Unit at the […]
![[L to R] Sangay Tshering, Pema Namgay, Passang Balu, and Jut Wynne (center) processing a captured Great Himalayan Leaf-nosed Bat (Hipposideros armiger), Rangtse Ney Cave, Gakiling Gewog.](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Bhutans-cave-biology.jpg?resize=1200%2C720&ssl=1)
Posted inAway Teams & Field Reports, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Caves, Craters, Mountains, Subsurface, Lava Tubes, Exploration Gear & Tech, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Nomenclature, Systematics, Natural History, Press Release, Sample Return
Away Team Visits Bhutan’s Unexplored Caves
Famous for its breathtaking mountain landscapes and cliffside Buddhist monasteries, the small South Asian kingdom of Bhutan is also home to miles upon miles of caves that have been shrouded […]