NASA’s Perseverance and ESA’s Rosalind Franklin rovers have the scientific goal of searching for evidence of ancient life on Mars. Geochemical biosignatures that form because of microbe-mineral interactions could play […]
Pubmed
Posted inAstronomy & Telescopes, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report
Detectability of Surface Biosignatures for Directly Imaged Rocky Exoplanets
Modeling the detection of life has never been more opportune. With next-generation space telescopes, such as the currently developing Habitable Worlds Observatory (HWO) concept, we will begin to characterize rocky […]
Posted inAI - Data - Apps - Cybernetics, Citizen Science / Open Science, Missions & Hardware, Status Report
Enabling Data Discovery With The Astrobiology Resource Metadata Standard
As scientific investigations increasingly adopt Open Science practices, reuse of data becomes paramount. However, despite decades of progress in internet search tools, finding relevant astrobiology datasets for an envisioned investigation […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Status Report
Prebiotic Access To Enantioenriched Amino Acids Via Peptide-mediated Transamination Reactions
The kinetic resolution of racemic amino acids mediated by dipeptides and pyridoxal provides a prebiotically plausible route to enantioenriched proteinogenic amino acids.
Posted inAnalog Studies, Astrogeology, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Impact events, Mars, Status Report
Are Large Sulfur Isotope Variations Biosignatures in an Ancient, Impact-Induced Hydrothermal Mars Analog?
Discrepancies have emerged concerning the application of sulfur stable isotope ratios as a biosignature in impact crater paleolakes.
Posted inBiochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Habitable Zones, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report
The Call For Aa New Definition Of A “Biosignature”
The term biosignature has become increasingly prevalent in astrobiology literature as our ability to search for life advances.
Posted inAway Teams & Field Reports, Exploration Gear & Tech, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Microbiology & Virology, Reports, Roadmaps, & Plans, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, ROVs/Submersibles/Diving, Status Report, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
The NASA Roadmap To Ocean Worlds
In this article, we summarize the work of the NASA Outer Planets Assessment Group (OPAG) Roadmaps to Ocean Worlds (ROW) group. The aim of this group is to assemble the […]
Posted inBiogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Reports, Roadmaps, & Plans, Status Report, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Science Autonomy For Ocean Worlds Astrobiology: A Perspective
Astrobiology missions to ocean worlds in our solar system must overcome both scientific and technological challenges due to extreme temperature and radiation conditions, long communication times, and limited bandwidth.
Posted inAI - Data - Apps - Cybernetics, Biophysics, Commercial & Private Sector, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Nanotechnology & SynBio, Status Report, Tricorders & Sensors
Tricorder Tech: A Biological Camera That Captures And Stores Images Directly Into DNA
Editor’s note: As we develop the instrumentation for use on offworld Astrobiology Away Teams, compactness and efficiency will be paramount. Given the distances involved team members may well need to […]
Posted inBiochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Habitable Zones, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report
Is There Such A Thing As A Biosignature?
The concept of a biosignature is widely used in astrobiology to suggest a link between some observation and a biological cause, given some context. The term itself has been defined […]