Tag Archives: astrobiology

Could Ultraviolet rays emitted by stars make planets uninhabitable?

We know that astronomers look to low-mass star systems for signs of life.  But new research from NASA has indicated that these low-mass stars may emit substantial amounts of ultraviolet radiation during their lifetime, hindering if not eliminating the possibility of life on orbiting planets. Of course, astronomers look at terrestrial worlds that lie in … Continue reading Could Ultraviolet rays emitted by stars make planets uninhabitable? Continue reading

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Could Ultraviolet rays emitted by stars make planets uninhabitable?

We know that astronomers look to low-mass star systems for signs of life.  But new research from NASA has indicated that these low-mass stars may emit substantial amounts of ultraviolet radiation during their lifetime, hindering if not eliminating the possibility of life on orbiting planets. Of course, astronomers look at terrestrial worlds that lie in … Continue reading Could Ultraviolet rays emitted by stars make planets uninhabitable? Continue reading

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Are Viruses the Missing Piece in Astrobiology?

Despite being the most abundant form of life on Earth, viruses and their dormant state known as virions, are often left out the conversation in identifying life outside this place. However, a group of scientists are now calling for this to change. Noting that the term virus is only used six times within NASA’s 250-paged […] Continue reading

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Blog #7

Image of hematite tubes from microfossils discovered in the hydrothermal vents We only had to memorize a few dates for Astro 2110, but one of them was how long ago life on Earth began. Memorizing such dates are easy, but I think it’s so interesting to consider how exactly scientists (and our textbook authors!) are … Continue reading Blog #7 Continue reading

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Europa Clipper

In the not too distant future, NASA will be sending a probe to one of Jupiter’s moons. I’m sure you can guess from the title of this blog post that the probe will be sent to Europa. Recently, NASA announced the name of this mission: Europa Clipper. It is named after clippers, swift ships that […] Continue reading

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Blog #3

The Earth is around 4.5 billion years old. The first half of the Earth’s existence (prior to the Great Oxidation Event which essentially introduced free oxygen (dioxygen) into the Earth’s atmosphere) was characterized by the presence of certain types of bacteria, although evidence of this existence on our planet is limited. However, last year, researchers … Continue reading Blog #3 Continue reading

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Made Out of Meat?

Space voyagers searching for intelligent life finds a race that has been trying to make contact for one hundred of its years – however, this species is so unlike anything these voyagers have ever contacted that they refuse to believe it’s even intelligent. When one of the voyagers convinces the other that the species is, […] Continue reading

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Are We Alone in the Universe?

And why does that question seem to be so hard to answer? Our universe is vast. There’s no doubt about that. And statistically, we should be able to find life in some way, shape, or form somewhere in the seemingly endless cosmos. For every grain of sand on Earth, there are ten thousand stars in … Continue reading Are We Alone in the Universe? Continue reading

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APF Telescopes used to Discover Nearby Planetary System

This week, a collective team of astronomers from the University of Hawaii at Manoa, UC Berkeley & the University of …

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Sending Chuck Berry to Space

In 1977, NASA launched the spacecraft Voyager 1 into space to observe Jupiter and Saturn and, eventually, to travel outside …

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