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Exoplanets, or planets in solar systems other than our own, sometimes orbit directly between the Earth and their host star. When the planet orbits in front of its star, it blocks a small amount of light. CfA scientists use the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) and the Kepler space telescopes as well as the ground-based robotic ...
Three lines of evidence: 1. It can occur on any world as long as it has the right conditions. 2. We know from meteorites and interstellar clouds that organic molecules are common throughout the world which means that we may find them in other places. 3. Life on Earth survives under extreme conditions which means that life is gully enough to ...
Determine how to recognize the signatures of life on other worlds beyond our solar system; Determine whether there is (or once was) life elsewhere in our solar system, particularly on Mars, Europa, or Titan; Determine how ecosystems respond to environmental change on timescales relevant to human life on Earth
The search for life beyond Earth is really just getting started, but science has an encouraging early answer: there are plenty of planets in the galaxy, many with similarities to our own. But what we don’t know fills volumes. Observations from the ground and from space have confirmed thousands of planets beyond our solar system. […]
- Mars. Covered with water billions of years ago, Mars has long been one of Earth’s most intriguing planetary neighbors, according to astronomers. The red planet is also a favorite destination of science fiction when imagining life outside of our home world.
- Next stop: Ocean Worlds. Mars may be a hotspot in the search for ancient life outside Earth, but future missions to other destinations in our solar system could illuminate someplace else.
- Jupiter.
- Europa. Jupiter’s moon Europa has a thick shell of ice — which could conceal an ocean beneath its surface. The ice shell is between 10 and 15 miles (15 and 25 kilometers) thick, and it likely sits on top of an ocean that’s estimated to be 40 to 100 miles (60 to 150 kilometers) deep.
Jun 20, 2023 · Topping the list is liquid water. Despite a broad spectrum of environmental conditions inhabited by living things on Earth, all life on the planet seems to require it. Liquid water provides a medium for the chemical components of life to persist over time and come together for reactions, in a way that air or the surface of a rock don’t do as ...
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Keep Exploring. So far, the only life we know of is right here on planet Earth. But NASA is looking for signs of life in our solar system and on some of the the thousands of planets we've discovered beyond it, on exoplanets. We can probe alien atmospheres for biosignatures, which could indicate life below.
