The detection of Interstellar Objects passing through the Solar system offers the promise of constraining the physical and chemical processes involved in planetary formation in other extrasolar systems. While the […]
Spectroscopy
Posted inEuropa, Imaging & Spectroscopy
Spatially Resolved Spectroscopy of Europa: The Distinct Spectrum of Large-scale Chaos
We present a comprehensive analysis of spatially resolved moderate spectral resolution near infrared spectra obtained with the adaptive optics system at the Keck Observatory. We identify three compositionally distinct end […]
![An artist’s depiction of our world when the Earthshine measurements were taken, enhanced to show the “red edge” from vegetation. A distant astronomer on another planet would see the spectral signatures of our oxygen atmosphere, water, and chlorophyll from land plants. [enlarge] Credit: John Walker’s “Earth Viewer,” Christine Lafon, (Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics).](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2002/10/Astronomers-Find-Life-on-Earth.png?resize=1200%2C719&ssl=1)
Posted inAtmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Press Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Astronomers Find Life On Earth
Now that the discovery of extrasolar planets, or planets around distant stars, has become relatively routine, scientists are now tackling the next step: finding life-bearing worlds. To do this, observers […]