![Retrieved emission spectra (blue regions) plotted with the true planet’s flux from our forward model (red) for each redox state considered (IW-6 to IW+6). The retrieved spectra denser region represents the 1𝜎 confidence level, intermediate region 2𝜎, thin region the 3𝜎 level. The observational noise from LIFEsim is shown as a gray envelope. The retrieved spectra capture most spectral features in observed planets, especially in the more pronounced oxidised cases (bottom row). -- [astro-ph.EP]](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Characterizing-the.png?resize=1200%2C720&ssl=1)
[astro-ph.EP] The oxidation state of rocky exoplanets is expected to play a fundamental role in shaping the chemical composition of their secondary atmospheres by influencing the chemical composition of volcanically […]
Large Interferometer for Exoplanets (LIFE)
Posted inExoplanets, -moons, -comets
Detecting Habitable Exoplanet Atmospheres With LIFE, The Large Interferometer For Exoplanets
[astro-ph.IM] A key goal of astronomers with the next generation telescopes is to detect signs of life in exoplanet atmospheres. NASA’s next flagship is the Habitable Worlds Observatory (HWO).
Posted inAstronomy & Telescopes, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy
Achieving Efficient Broadband Spatial Filtering For LIFE: Status And Plan
[astro-ph.IM] Nulling interferometry is one of the most promising techniques that is envisioned for the imaging and characterization of exoplanets in the mid-infrared for ground-based and space-based observatories. On the […]
Posted inAstronomy & Telescopes, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report
Exploring Exoplanets with Interferometry
(Extract from the Executive Summary) Humanity stands at the threshold of answering one of its most profound questions: Does life exist beyond Earth?
Posted inAnalog Studies, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
The Goldilocks Problem For Detecting Water In Terrestrial Planets: Constraining Water Abundances In The mid-IR With LIFE
We investigate how well the Large Interferometer for Exoplanets (LIFE) mission concept can detect habitable conditions on exoplanets through the presence of atmospheric water vapor as a proxy for surface […]
Posted inAtmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Habitable Zones, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report
Climates Of Terrestrial Exoplanets And Biosignatures
Understanding the climates of terrestrial exoplanets and the detectability of biosignatures is an inherently interdisciplinary challenge, requiring the integration of insights from Solar System exploration, exoplanet observations and climate science. […]
Posted inAstronomy & Telescopes, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Habitable Zones, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report
Detectability of Atmospheric Biosignatures in Earth Analogs with Varying Surface Boundary Conditions: Prospects for Characterization in the UV, Visible, Near-Infrared, and Mid-Infrared Regions
The search for potentially habitable exoplanets centers on detecting biosignature molecules in Earth-like atmospheres, which makes it essential to understand their detectability under biologically and geologically influenced conditions.
![Distribution of simulated EEC yield (solid contours) and underlying planet population (dotted contours) around FGK-type stars within 20 pc. We show the planetary radius over incident flux distribution, where the color shading represents the relative density of planet occurrences in this parameter space. The colored contours enclose 10% to 100% of the total planet counts, with the innermost contour indicating the highest-density regions. Grey dashed lines represent EEC boundaries around a Sun-like star with S/S⊕ ∈ [0.356, 1.107] and R/R⊕ ∈ [0.8 · S 0.25, 1.4] (Kopparapu et al. 2014; Stark et al. 2019; Quanz et al. 2022b). Top and right margin plots show the individual distributions of incident flux and planetary radius of detected and total underlying populations. Underlying synthetic planet populations are based on Kammerer et al. (2022). -- astro-ph.EP](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Detecting-Atmospheric-CO2-Trends1.png?resize=1200%2C720&ssl=1)
Posted inAstronomy & Telescopes, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Habitable Zones, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report
Detecting Atmospheric CO2 Trends as Population-Level Signatures for Long-Term Stable Water Oceans and Biotic Activity on Temperate Terrestrial Exoplanets
Identifying key observables is essential for enhancing our knowledge of exoplanet habitability and biospheres, as well as improving future mission capabilities.
Posted inAstronomy & Telescopes, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report
Photobombing For The Large Interferometer For Exoplanets (LIFE)
One of the primary objectives in modern astronomy is to discover and study planets with characteristics similar to Earth. This pursuit involves analyzing the spectra of exoplanets and searching for […]
Posted inAstrobiology (general), Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Habitable Zones, Intelligence & Language, Press Release, SETI & Technosignatures, Societal Issues
What If We Find Nothing In Our Search For Life Beyond Earth?
What if we spend decades building advanced telescopes to search for life on other planets and come up empty-handed? A recent study led by ETH Zurich researchers including corresponding author […]