The search for life beyond the solar system is a central goal in exoplanetary science. Exoplanet surveys are increasingly detecting potentially habitable exoplanets and large telescopes in space and on […]
A planet’s spectrum is dynamic and only represents a time-dependent snapshot of its properties. Changing atmospheric conditions due to climate and weather patterns, particularly variation in cloud cover, can significantly […]
Without plants on land, humans could not live on Earth. From mosses to ferns to grasses to trees, plants are our food, fodder and timber. All this diversity emerged from […]
It is widely believed that Earth’s atmosphere has been rich in oxygen for about 2.5 billion years due to a relatively rapid increase in microorganisms capable of performing photosynthesis. Researchers, […]
The average long-term impact of Darwinian evolution on Earth’s habitability remains extremely uncertain. Recent attempts to reconcile this uncertainty by “Darwinizing” nonreplicating biogeochemical processes subject to persistence-based selection conform with […]
A new study led by an international team, including researchers from The University of Western Australia, has discovered that a common marine organism could provide new ways to monitor ocean […]
Earth’s limb at sunset as photographed by one of the Expedition Two crew members with a digital still camera aimed through the nadir window of the U.S. laboratory Destiny during […]
This study uses methods from futures studies to develop a set of ten self-consistent scenarios for Earth’s 1000-year future, which can serve as examples for defining technosignature search strategies.
Biological activities are often seen entrained onto the day-night and other celestial mechanical cycles (e.g., seasonal and lunar), but studies on the origin of life have largely not accounted for […]
Microbial organisms have been implicated in several mass extinction events throughout Earth’s planetary history. Concurrently, it can be reasoned from recent viral pandemics that viruses likely exacerbated the decline of […]
