Researchers have found magnetic material in a 4.5-billion-year-old Martian meteorite that could only have been produced by bacteria. This new data strongly supports the primitive life on Mars hypothesis of […]
NASA
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biophysics, Interstellar, Origin & Evolution of Life, People Of Astrobiology, Press Release
Scientists find clues that the path leading to the origin of life begins in deep space
Duplicating the harsh conditions of cold interstellar space in the laboratory, scientists from The Astrochemistry Laboratory at NASA’s Ames Research Center and the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at The […]
Posted inBiosignatures & Paleobiology, Fossils & Paleontology, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mars, Meteorites & Asteroids, Microbiology & Virology, Press Release
New Report Offers Evidence of Primitive Life on Mars
A new scientific report offers compelling evidence that primitive life existed on Mars. Tiny magnetite crystals, identical to those used by aqueous bacteria on Earth as compasses to find food […]
Posted inBiosignatures & Paleobiology, Fossils & Paleontology, Origin & Evolution of Life, Press Release
Earth Life Appeared on Land 1.5 billion Years Earlier Than Previously Thought
Evidence of life on Earth has been found as far back as 3.8 billion years. Given that the intense bombardment that accompanied the birth of the solar system only subsided […]
Posted inAstrobiology (general), Mars, NASA Astrobiology Program, People Of Astrobiology, Press Release
NASA Astrobiology Architect, Dr. Gerald Soffen, Dies
NASA Scientist Dr. Gerald Soffen, who led the Viking science team that performed the first experiments on the surface of the planet Mars and a guiding force in NASA’s effort […]
Posted inAstrobiology (general), Astrogeology, Mars, Missions & Hardware, Sample Return
A Year of Mars News: It was the worst of times; it was the best of times.
Mars Disappoints A little over a year ago NASA was poised on the cusp of a new phase in its exploration of Mars. A new sophisticated orbiter was ready to […]
Posted inBiogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Europa, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Press Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
More Evidence of an Ice Covered Ocean on Europa
NASA researchers have the strongest evidence yet that one of Jupiter’s most mysterious moons hides a fermenting ocean of water underneath its icy coat. This evidence comes from magnetic readings […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mars, Meteorites & Asteroids, Panspermia, Press Release
Doubt cast on life on Mars – University of Greenwich Reproduces Chemical Structures Found In Meteorites
The complex chemical structures found in a meteorite from Mars, which scientists in 1996 hailed as possible evidence of past life on the planet, can be reproduced quite simply in […]
Posted inArctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Astrochemistry, Astrogeology, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Habitable Zones, Mars, Meteorites & Asteroids
Mars May Be Even Wetter Than It Was Last Week
In less than a week, our collective understanding of the amount of water on Mars has been totally revamped. First there was the announcement that liquid water is apparently at […]
Posted inAtmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Fossils & Paleontology, Habitable Zones, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Mars, Meteorites & Asteroids, Press Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Mars Once Had Salty Oceans – Just Like Earth
On the same day that NASA was announcing the apparent presence of liquid water near the surface of Mars, another research team announced that Mars once had salty oceans like […]