[astro-ph.SR] Low-mass GKM dwarfs are prime targets for finding habitable-zone Earth-sized planets, but their frequent flares, especially on M~dwarfs, can strongly affect planetary atmospheres through enhanced UV/XUV radiation and stellar […]
habitability
Posted inMagnetic Fields, Electromagnetism, bioelectricity,
The Strongest Evidence To Date Of A Magnetic Field On An Exoplanet
[IAC] The Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC) is taking part in an international study, published in the journal “Science”, which provides the first conclusive evidence of a planet’s influence […]
Posted inOrigin & Evolution of Life
The Biological Cosmological Constant ΛB: Exploratory Propensity, Dynamical Habitability And The Geometric Origin Of Life
[BioSystems via PubMed] The emergence of life represents a fundamental geometric phase transition in the state space of complex systems, rather than a mere sequence of chemical syntheses. Building upon […]
Posted inImpact events
Asteroid Assault Made Ancient Earth Too Hot And Chaotic For Continents To Form
[Curtin University] New research led by Curtin University and QUT (Queensland University of Technology) has revealed repeated asteroid impacts may have been the dominant force shaping the early Earth, delivering […]
Posted inMars
Fifty Years after Viking: The Promise of Solar System Microbiology and Microbial Ecology
[Astrobiology via PubMed] The ambiguity of the Viking lander life-detection experiments left microbiology and microbial ecology out of space missions for 50 years. However, this was largely because the scientific […]
Posted inUncategorized
An Agnostic Machine Learning Model of Photosynthetic Habitability
The search for exoplanet biosignatures is guided by whether planetary environments can sustain photosynthesis.
Posted inBiochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Desert Worlds, Habitable Zones, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mars, Missions & Hardware
Organic Carbon Detected In The Bright Angel Formation On Mars
In September of last year, NASA announced that its Perseverance rover discovered a potential biosignature, which is a substance or structure that might have a biological origin.
Posted inMars
Energy-Limited Radiolytic Habitability in the Shallow Martian Subsurface: Implications for ExoMars Rosalind Franklin and Tianwen-3
The surface of Mars is sterilized by ionizing radiation and pervasive oxidants; its shallow subsurface, shielded from ultraviolet light and the most reactive oxidation, may instead preserve habitable conditions.
Posted inAstrobiology (general)
18 PhD Positions And 6 Postdoc Positions In Planetary HabitabilityCollaborative Research Center (CRC) SFB 1759
A new Collaborative Research Center (CRC) SFB 1759 on “Habitability as a fundamental planetary process: Towards a paradigm shift away from our perception of the uniqueness of Earth” funded by […]
Posted inUncategorized
An Empirical Determination Of The Cosmic Shoreline
The cosmic shoreline concept was introduced to separate planets with atmospheres from those without, by relating the cumulative X-ray and extreme-ultraviolet (XUV) instellation (integrated over the planet’s lifetime) to the […]