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This artist's concept shows NASA's Dawn spacecraft arriving at the dwarf planet Ceres, the most massive body in the asteroid belt. Dawn is the first mission to visit a dwarf planet -- a round body that orbits the sun but, unlike a planet, does not clear i
NASA's Dawn Mission to Asteroid Belt Comes to EndNov. 5, 2018
Graphical abstract adapted from Mirchi et al. (2018). "Catalytic abiotic synthesis of uracil from cysteine and urea: Theoretical studies," Chemical Physics Letters, 710(16), 16-25
From Cysteine and Urea to UracilNov. 5, 2018
The thick atmosphere of Venus can be seen in this image captured by the Akatsuki orbiter. This is a synthesized false color image of Venus using 283-nm and 365-nm images.
What Would Happen If Mars And Venus Swapped Places?Nov. 4, 2018
Side-by-side comparison of RNA and DNA for context.
Transformation in Nucleoside AnaloguesNov. 2, 2018
To better support the broad, interdisciplinary field of astrobiology – the study of the origin, evolution, distribution, and future of life in the universe – NASA is announcing a new programmatic infrastructure for the Astrobiology Program.
NASA’s Astrobiology Program Evolving to Meet the FutureNov. 1, 2018
MRO image in the Southern hemisphere of Mars. There are shallow pits in the bright residual cap of carbon dioxide ice and a circular formation that penetrates through the ice and dust. This might be an impact crater or it could be a collapse pit.
Reminder: Student travel grant for "Mars Extant Life: What's Next?"Nov. 1, 2018
This illustration depicts NASA's exoplanet hunter, the Kepler space telescope.
NASA Retires Kepler Space Telescope, Passes Planet-Hunting TorchOct. 31, 2018
How atmospheric thermal tides create bulges in the atmosphere. The example depicted here is of Mars.
How life could help atmospheric tides slow a planet’s rotationOct. 31, 2018
Side-by-side comparison of RNA and DNA for context.
Transformation in Nucleoside AnaloguesOct. 30, 2018
The 2019 Astrobiology Science Conference will be held in Seattle, Washington, from June 24-28, 2019.
The Search for Life Near and FarOct. 29, 2018
Fragment of the Acasta Gneiss formation in Canada’s Northwestern Territories, which contains the oldest known exposed rock in the world. Could carbon sequestered in such rocks reveal the existence of asteroid impacts that caused evolutionary bottlenecks?
How Geology Tells the Story of Evolutionary Bottlenecks and Life on EarthOct. 27, 2018
Artist’s impression of RNA.
RNA, Fe2+, and the Origins of LifeOct. 26, 2018
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