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Astrobiology news
Resurrected ancient enzyme offers new window into early Earth and the search for life beyond it
By resurrecting a 3.2-billion-year-old enzyme and studying it inside living microbes, researchers at the University of Wisconsin–Madison have created a new way to improve our understanding of the origins of life on Earth ...
Astrobiology
17 hours ago
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Rethinking where life could exist beyond Earth
Astronomers have long searched for life within a rather narrow ring around a star, the "habitable zone," where a planet should be neither too hot nor too cold for liquid water. A new study argues that this ring is too strict: ...
Astrobiology
21 hours ago
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Q&A: How AI changes NASA's search for life in outer space
Alicja Ostrowska's doctoral thesis "Life and AI at NASA" examines how artificial intelligence is transforming the way science is conducted within some of the world's most ambitious space projects. The study investigates how ...
Astrobiology
Jan 21, 2026
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Complex building blocks of life form spontaneously in space, research reveals
Challenging long-held assumptions, Aarhus University researchers have demonstrated that the protein building blocks essential for life as we know it can form readily in space. This discovery, appearing in Nature Astronomy, ...
Astrobiology
Jan 20, 2026
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The alien hunter's shopping list
We recently discussed the different types of worlds that the Habitable Worlds Observatory (HWO) is expected to find that might have noticeable biosignatures. However, no matter how good the instrumentation on board the observatory ...
Astrobiology
Jan 20, 2026
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Sinking salty ice suggests pathway for life-sustaining conditions in Europa's ocean
A recent study by geophysicists at Washington State University offers insight into how nutrients may reach the subsurface ocean of Europa, one of Jupiter's moons and a leading candidate for extraterrestrial life in the solar ...
Astrobiology
Jan 20, 2026
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Searching for 'green oceans' and 'purple Earths'
The early stage of giant telescope development involves a lot of horse-trading to try to appease all the different stakeholders that are hoping to get what they want out of the project, but also to try to appease the financial ...
Astrobiology
Jan 19, 2026
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Experiments bring Enceladus' subsurface ocean into the lab
Through new experiments, researchers in Japan and Germany have recreated the chemical conditions found in the subsurface ocean of Saturn's moon, Enceladus. Published in Icarus, the results show that these conditions can readily ...
Hidden magma oceans could shield rocky exoplanets from harmful radiation
Deep beneath the surface of distant exoplanets known as super-Earths, oceans of molten rock may be doing something extraordinary: powering magnetic fields strong enough to shield entire planets from dangerous cosmic radiation ...
Astrobiology
Jan 15, 2026
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Two new exoplanets and the need for new habitable zone definitions
At the beginning of the exoplanet age, the goals were fairly simple. The first was to find as many of them as possible to flesh out our understanding of the exoplanet population. The second was to determine if any were in ...
Astrobiology
Jan 15, 2026
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Enthusiasts used their home computers to search for ET—scientists are homing in on 100 signals they found
For 21 years, between 1999 and 2020, millions of people worldwide loaned UC Berkeley scientists their computers to search for signs of advanced civilizations in our galaxy.
Astronomy
Jan 13, 2026
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Phages and bacteria accumulate distinctive mutations aboard the International Space Station
In a new study, terrestrial bacteria-infecting viruses were still able to infect their E. coli hosts in near-weightless "microgravity" conditions aboard the International Space Station, but the dynamics of virus-bacteria ...
Astrobiology
Jan 13, 2026
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A quarter-century in orbit: Science shaping life on Earth and beyond
For more than 25 years, humans have lived and worked continuously aboard the International Space Station, conducting research that is transforming life on Earth and shaping the future of exploration. From growing food and ...
Space Exploration
Jan 13, 2026
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Complex life on planets orbiting the galaxy's most common stars may be unlikely
In a blow to anyone dreaming that complex life may exist elsewhere in the universe, a new study suggests we're unlikely to find it around many of the most common stars in the galaxy.
Mars was once a 'blue planet': Ancient river deltas point to vast ocean
Using images from cameras on Mars orbiters, an international research team has discovered structures on Mars that are very similar to classic river deltas on Earth. These are traces of rivers that have deposited their sediments ...
Astrobiology
Jan 12, 2026
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Can we use bees as a model of intelligent alien life to develop interstellar communication?
Humans have always been fascinated with space. We frequently question whether we are alone in the universe. If not, what does intelligent life look like? And how would aliens communicate?
Astronomy
Jan 9, 2026
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Lunar spacecraft exhaust could obscure clues to origins of life
Over half of the exhaust methane from lunar spacecraft could end up contaminating areas of the moon that might otherwise yield clues about the origins of Earthly life, according to a recent study. The pollution could unfold ...
Astrobiology
Jan 7, 2026
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New census of sun's neighbors reveals best potential real estate for life
A new study led by a Georgia State University astronomy graduate student is a major step forward in the search for stars that could host Earth-like planets that may prove to be good havens for life to develop. Sebastián ...
Astrobiology
Jan 6, 2026
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Jupiter's moon Europa lacks the undersea activity needed to support life, study suggests
The giant planet Jupiter has nearly 100 known moons, yet none have captured the interest and imagination of astronomers and space scientists quite like Europa, an ice-shrouded world that is thought to possess a vast ocean ...
Astrobiology
Jan 6, 2026
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To understand exoplanet habitability, we need a better understanding of stellar flaring
One of the main questions in exoplanet science concerns M dwarfs (red dwarfs) and the habitability of exoplanets that orbit them. These stars are known for their prolific and energetic flaring, and that's a problem. M dwarfs ...
Astrobiology
Jan 6, 2026
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What seven decades of hunting for aliens tells us
Why being in the 'right place' isn't enough for life
Molecular surgery: 'Deleting' a single atom from a molecule
