Enough heat to power hydrothermal activity inside Saturn’s ocean moon Enceladus for billions of years could be generated through tidal friction if the moon has a highly porous core, a […]
ESA
Posted inAnalog Studies, Press Release
Testing Underground To Learn How To Find Life On Mars
If life exists on Mars, it will have sought refuge underground. Trying to uncover one of the best-kept secrets in the Solar System, scientists are working a kilometre beneath the […]
Posted inAstrogeology, Press Release
Archaeology in Space: Searching for Life in Rocks
ESA astronauts Pedro Duque and Matthias Maurer have completed geology training to prepare them to be effective partners of planetary scientists and engineers in designing future exploration missions. This third […]
Posted inExtremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Microbiology & Virology, Press Release, Radiation, Space Stations
Expose-R2 External Space Exposure Experiment Returned From Space Station
Hitching a ride in the Soyuz capsule with Tim Peake, Yuri Malenchenko and Tim Kopra were 46 species of small organisms and more than 150 organic compounds. Their voyage was […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Comets and Asteroids, Press Release
Rosetta's Comet Contains Ingredients For The Origin of Life
Ingredients regarded as crucial for the origin of life on Earth have been discovered at the comet that ESA’s Rosetta spacecraft has been probing for almost two years. They include […]
Posted inAnalog Studies, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Away Teams & Field Reports, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Habitable Zones, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Microbiology & Virology, Origin & Evolution of Life, Press Release, Sample Return
Hydrothermal Systems Show Spectrum of Extreme Life on Earth
The Danakil Depression in Ethiopia is one of the most inhospitable places on Earth. Hydrothermal system at the Danakil Depression. The yellow deposits are a variety of sulphates and the […]
Posted inPress Release, Titan, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
A Closer Look At Titan's Methane Seas
Saturn’s largest moon is covered in seas and lakes of liquid hydrocarbons and one sea has now been found to be filled with pure methane, with a seabed covered by […]
Posted inAstrobiology (general), Press Release, Reports, Roadmaps, & Plans
Release of the First Roadmap for European Astrobiology
The first scientific Roadmap for European Astrobiology was published on March 21st. This strategic landmark for European astrobiology has been produced through the European Commission-funded AstRoMap project (2013-2015). In putting […]
Posted inExtremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Press Release, Space Stations
Spacewalk Marks End of ESA's Exposed Space Chemistry Experiment
ESA’s Expose facility was retrieved today from outside the International Space Station by cosmonauts Yuri Malenchenko and Sergei Volkov, who were completing a spacewalk to place new experiments on the […]
Posted inExtremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Mars, Press Release, Space Stations
Fungi Survive Martian Conditions on the International Space Station
The McMurdo Dry Valleys, located in the Antarctic Victoria Land, are considered to be the most similar earthly equivalent to Mars. They make up one of the driest and most […]