NASA Astrobiology

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A volcanically active planet is shown in closeup at the left side of the image with glowing eruptions and lines of lava on the surface. To the right and in the distance is a faint blue glowing ball representing the more massive planet in the system.

Sixteen frames from Voyager 1's flyby of Jupiter in 1979 were merged to create this image. Jupiter's Great Red Spot is visible in the center. Jupiter's moon Europa can be seen in the foreground at the bottom left of the image.

The frame is a horizontal rainbow of color on a grid. Shadows of molecules can be seen through the light as well as the jagged peaks and troughs of spectral lines.

Fizzy Super Earths and Lava Worlds“Fizzy Super-Earths: Impacts of Magma Composition on the Bulk Density and Structure of Lava Worlds.” in The Astrophysical Journal.01/03

Identifying Hydrothermal Activity on Icy Ocean Worlds“Ethene-ethanol ratios as potential indicators of hydrothermal activity at Enceladus, Europa, and other icy ocean worlds.” In Icarus.02/03

NASA Raman Spectroscopic Database"The NASA Raman spectroscopic database: Ramdb version 1.00.” In Icarus.03/03

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February 2025TRAPPIST-1 d: Exo-Venus, Exo-Earth, or Exo-Dead?

Way, M. J. (2025). TRAPPIST-1 d: Exo-Venus, Exo-Earth, or Exo-Dead? The Astrophysical Journal Letters, 980(1), L7. doi:10.3847/2041-8213/adace0

The Once and Future Gas: Methane's Multifunctional Roles in Earth's Evolution and Potential as a Biosignature

Glass, J. B., & Hörst, S. M. (2025). The Once and Future Gas: Methane's Multifunctional Roles in Earth's Evolution and Potential as a Biosignature. Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences. doi:10.1146/annurev-earth-040523-124821

An astrobiological perspective on microbial biofilms: their importance for habitability and production of detectable and lasting biosignatures

Gonzalez-Henao, S., & Schrenk, M. O. (2025). An astrobiological perspective on microbial biofilms: their importance for habitability and production of detectable and lasting biosignatures. Applied and Environmental Microbiology. doi:10.1128/aem.01778-24

A reassessment of the “hard-steps” model for the evolution of intelligent life

Mills, D. B., Macalady, J. L., Frank, A., & Wright, J. T. (2025). A reassessment of the “hard-steps” model for the evolution of intelligent life. Science Advances, 11(7), None. doi:10.1126/sciadv.ads5698

Amino Acid Complexation Fractionates Nickel Isotopes: Implications for Tracing Nickel Cycling in the Environment

Selden, C. R., Schilling, K., Basu, A., Timm, J., Saunders, N., & Yee, N. (2025). Amino Acid Complexation Fractionates Nickel Isotopes: Implications for Tracing Nickel Cycling in the Environment. Environmental Science & Technology Letters. doi:10.1021/acs.estlett.4c01060

Earth Detecting Earth: At What Distance Could Earth’s Constellation of Technosignatures Be Detected with Present-day Technology?

Sheikh, S. Z., Huston, M. J., Fan, P., Wright, J. T., Beatty, T., Martini, C., … Frank, A. (2025). Earth Detecting Earth: At What Distance Could Earth’s Constellation of Technosignatures Be Detected with Present-day Technology? The Astronomical Journal, 169(2), 118. doi:10.3847/1538-3881/ada3c7

Genetic Transfer in Action: Uncovering DNA Flow in an Extremophilic Microbial Community

Van Etten, J. Stephens, T.G., & Bhattacharya, B. (2025) Genetic Transfer in Action: Uncovering DNA Flow in an Extremophilic Microbial Community. Environmental Microbiology, 27(2), e70048. dio:10.1111/1462-2920.70048

January 2025Hydrogenotrophic methanogenesis at 7–12 mbar by Methanosarcina barkeri under simulated martian atmospheric conditions

Harris, R. L., & Schuerger, A. C. (2025). Hydrogenotrophic methanogenesis at 7–12 mbar by Methanosarcina barkeri under simulated martian atmospheric conditions. Scientific Reports, 15(1), None. doi:10.1038/s41598-025-86145-1

Obliquity Dependence of Ocean Productivity and Atmospheric CO2 on Earth-like Worlds

Lerner, P., Romanou, A., Way, M., & Colos, C. (2025) Obliquity Dependence of Ocean Productivity and Atmospheric CO2 on Earth-like Worlds. The Astrophysical Journal, 979(234). doi: 10.3847/1538-4357/ada277

Measurement of circular intensity differential scattering (CIDS) from single optically trapped biological particles

Alali, H., Pan, Y-L., Kalume, A., Hu, Y., Surkov, Y., Shkuratov, Y., … Wang, C. (2025). Measurement of circular intensity differential scattering (CIDS) from single optically trapped biological particles. Journal of Quantitative Spectroscopy and Radiative Transfer, 330, 109244. doi:10.1016/j.jqsrt.2024.109244

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