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Scialog

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Signatures of Life in the Universe

2021-2023

Over a remarkably short period of time, we have moved from seeking evidence for the existence of planets in other solar systems to amassing a catalogue of thousands of such exoplanets. We are now on the verge of being able to ask if any of these planets, or if any of the bodies in our solar system other than Earth, harbor life. To initiate a systematic survey for extraterrestrial life will require the careful definition of what chemical features to search for – the “signatures of life” – and the design and development of new, more sensitive tools to detect those chemical signatures. This Scialog will bring together early-career scientists from fields including earth and planetary science, chemistry and physics, astronomy and astrobiology, microbiology and biochemistry, and computer and data science to generate cutting edge projects to gain fundamental understanding of habitability of planets, detection of life beyond Earth, and life in extreme environments on Earth or in Earth’s distant past.

Fellows & Facilitators

Fellows
Facilitators

Team Awards

Goal: to advance fundamental science for finding signatures of life in the universe and develop approaches for breakthroughs.

2023 Team Awards

The Power is in the Poop: Experimental Investigation of Microbially-Generated Organics as a Biosignature for Ocean Worlds

  • Morgan Cable
    Planetary Science Section
    NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory / California Institute of Technology 4
  • Nagissa Mahmoudi
    Earth & Planetary Sciences
    McGill University 1

A Close Look at the Habitability of Water Worlds

  • Jennifer Bergner
    Chemistry
    University of California, Berkeley 1
  • Christopher Glein
    Space Science Division
    Southwest Research Institute 1
  • Renyu Hu
    Astrophysics & Space Sciences
    Jet Propulsion Laboratory 4

Investigating the Biological Potential of Moons in the Uranus System

  • Marc Neveu
    Astronomy / Planetary Environments Laboratory
    University of Maryland/NASA Goddard Space Flight Center 4
  • Malena Rice
    Astronomy
    Yale University 1
  • Leslie Rogers
    Astronomy & Astrophysics
    University of Chicago 1

Constraining Volatile Budgets in Small Exoplanets through Coupled Petrological and Atmospheric Modeling and Observations

  • Peter Gao
    Earth and Planets Laboratory
    Carnegie Institution for Science 1
  • Renyu Hu
    Astrophysics & Space Sciences
    Jet Propulsion Laboratory 4
  • Chenguang Sun
    Geological Sciences
    University of Texas at Austin 1

Sulfur Assimilation: A Novel Proxy for Redox Transitions in the Early Biosphere

  • Greg Fournier
    EAPS
    Massachusetts Institute of Technology 1
  • Morgan Raven
    Earth Science
    University of California, Santa Barbara 2

Constraining the Abiotic Sulfur Cycle on Temperate Terrestrial Planets

  • Bradford Foley
    Geosciences
    Pennsylvania State University 2
  • Sukrit Ranjan
    Planetary Sciences
    University of Arizona 3
  • Rebecca Rapf
    Chemistry
    Trinity University 3
  • Morgan Raven
    Earth Science
    University of California, Santa Barbara 2

Irradiated Sea Spray Aerosol Generation and Analysis Under Early Earth Atmospheres

  • Tyler Robinson
    Lunar and Planetary Laboratory
    University of Arizona 2
  • Amanda Stockton
    Chemistry and Biochemistry
    Georgia Institute of Technology 2

Rocky Roads: Flow Pathways and Chemical Evolution in Vesicular Lava and Pumice

  • Paul Bracher
    Chemistry
    Saint Louis University 1
  • Christopher Hamilton
    Lunar and Planetary Laboratory
    University of Arizona 1

1 Funded by Heising-Simons Foundation
2 Funded by RCSA
3 Funded by Kavli Foundation
4 Funded by NASA

2022 Team Awards

Enceladus Plume Chemistry: From Lab to Telescope

  • Katherine de Kleer
    Geological and Planetary Sciences
    Caltech *
  • Sarah Hörst
    Earth and Planetary Science
    Johns Hopkins University *
  • Sarah Maurer
    Chemistry and Biochemistry
    Central Connecticut State University *

Computational and Experimental Investigations of Martian Brines as Prebiotic Environments

  • Aaron Engelhart
    Genetics, Cell Biology, and Development
    University of Minnesota ^

    Fang Liu
    Chemistry
    Emory University ^

From Exoplanets to Microbes: Using Astronomical Image Processing Techniques to Detect Microbes in Astrobiological Contexts

  • Kate Follette
    Physics and Astronomy
    Amherst College *

    Jeffrey Marlow
    Biology
    Boston University *

Brimstone Life: Hypothetical Sulfur Worlds and Their Possible Biosignatures

  • Paul Bracher
    Chemistry
    Saint Louis University ^

    Ilse Cleeves
    Astronomy
    University of Virginia *

Methylated Organometallic Gases as Potential Biosignatures

  • Eddie Schwieterman
    Earth and Planetary Sciences
    University of California, Riverside †

    Ziming Yang
    Chemistry
    Oakland University †

Volatile Reservoirs and the Habitability of M-Earths

  • Nick Cowan
    Earth & Planetary Sciences and Physics
    McGill University *

    Joseph O’Rourke
    Earth and Space Exploration
    Arizona State University *

    Leslie Rogers
    Astronomy & Astrophysics
    University of Chicago *

    Chenguang Sun
    Geological Sciences
    University of Texas at Austin *

Assessing False Positive Biosignatures and Prebiotic Synthesis Generated by Two Candidate Autocatalytic Reaction Sets of Aqueous Sulfur

  • Zachary Adam
    Geoscience
    University of Wisconsin – Madison ^

    Fang Liu
    Chemistry
    Emory University ^

Mars Sample Return: Connecting Martian Environmental Geochemistry to Returned Samples

  • Laurie Barge
    Planetary Sciences
    NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory ‡

    Frances Rivera-Hernández
    Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
    Georgia Institute of Technology *
  • * Funded by Heising-Simons Foundation
    ^ Funded by RCSA
    † Funded by Kavli Foundation
    ‡ Funded by NASA
2021 Team Awards

Can the Search for Oxygenated Atmosphere Biosignatures Lead to False Negatives?

  • Greg Fournier
    Earth, Atmosphere and Planetary Sciences
    Massachusetts Institute of Technology *

    Stilianos Louca
    Biology
    University of Oregon †

Methane from Nontraditional Abiotic Sources and Potential for False Biosignature Positives

  • Jen Glass
    School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
    Georgia Institute of Technology †

    Edwin Kite
    Geophysical Sciences
    University of Chicago §

    Smadar Naoz
    Physics and Astronomy
    UCLA †

How May Biosignatures in Icy Ocean Worlds be Affected by Plume Ejection?

  • Marc Neveu
    Astronomy / Planetary Environments Laboratory
    NASA Goddard Space Flight Center / University of Maryland ‡

    Ziming Yang
    Chemistry
    Oakland University †

Synthetic Mineral Geo-Electrodes for Detecting Life on Ocean Worlds

  • Laurie Barge
    Planetary Sciences
    NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory ‡

    Jeffrey Marlow
    Biology
    Boston University †

Long Term Controls on the Scope of Earth’s Biosphere

  • Rika Anderson
    Biology
    Carleton College †

    Noah Planavsky
    Geology and Geophysics,
    Yale †

Water, Water Everywhere … Drops to Drink but Nothing to Eat? A Model for the Evolution of Ocean Chemistry on Waterworlds

  • Bradford Foley
    Geosciences
    Pennsylvania State University *

    Kimberly Lau
    Geosciences
    Pennsylvania State University *

    Stephanie Olson
    Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Science
    Purdue University *

Could Nucleic Acid-Based Life Survive on Oxygen-Rich M Dwarf Planets?

  • Aaron Engelhart
    Genetics, Cell Biology, and Development
    University of Minnesota *

    Meredith MacGregor
    Astrophysical and Planetary Sciences
    University of Colorado Boulder *

    Laura Schaefer
    Geological Sciences
    Stanford University *

Stochastic Simulation of Evolving Planetary Biospheres

  • Edwin Kite
    Geophysical Sciences
    University of Chicago *

    Stilianos Louca
    Biology
    University of Oregon *

    Chris Reinhard
    Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
    Georgia Institute of Technology *

* Funded by Heising-Simons
† Funded by RCSA
‡ Funded by NASA
§ Funded by RCSA with Kavli Foundation support

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