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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October 2022Ocean dynamics and tracer transport over the south pole geysers of Enceladus

Kang, W., Marshall, J., Mittal, T., & Bire, S. (2022). Ocean dynamics and tracer transport over the south pole geysers of Enceladus. Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, 517(3), 3485–3494. doi:10.1093/mnras/stac2882

Hydrothermal Processing of Microorganisms: Mass Spectral Signals of Degraded Biosignatures for Life Detection on Icy Moons

Salter, T. L., Watson, J. S., Waite, J. H., & Sephton, M. A. (2022). Hydrothermal Processing of Microorganisms: Mass Spectral Signals of Degraded Biosignatures for Life Detection on Icy Moons. ACS Earth and Space Chemistry, 6(10), 2508–2518. doi:10.1021/acsearthspacechem.2c00213

September 2022Foundational women in planetary geomorphology: Some contributions in fluvial, aeolian, and (cryo)volcanic subdisciplines

Burr, D. M., Diniega, S., Quick, L. C., Gardner‐Vandy, K., & Rivera‐Hernandez, F. (2022). Foundational women in planetary geomorphology: Some contributions in fluvial, aeolian, and (cryo)volcanic subdisciplines. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms. doi:10.1002/esp.5465

Abundant phosphorus expected for possible life in Enceladus’s ocean

Hao, J., Glein, C. R., Huang, F., Yee, N., Catling, D. C., Postberg, F., … Hazen, R. M. (2022). Abundant phosphorus expected for possible life in Enceladus’s ocean. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 119(39), None. doi:10.1073/pnas.2201388119

Compositional Controls on the Distribution of Brine in Europa's Ice Shell

Wolfenbarger, N. S., Fox‐Powell, M. G., Buffo, J. J., Soderlund, K. M., & Blankenship, D. D. (2022). Compositional Controls on the Distribution of Brine in Europa's Ice Shell. Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets, 127(9), None. doi:10.1029/2022je007305

August 2022Composition, Roughness, and Topography from Radar Backscatter at Selk Crater, the Dragonfly Landing Site

Bonnefoy, L. E., Lucas, A., Hayes, A. G., Rodriguez, S., Poggiali, V., Lalich, D. E., … Gall, A. L. (2022). Composition, Roughness, and Topography from Radar Backscatter at Selk Crater, the Dragonfly Landing Site. The Planetary Science Journal, 3(8), 201. doi:10.3847/psj/ac8428

Planetary Oceanography: Leveraging Expertise Among Earth and Planetary Science

German, C., , ., Arrigo, K., Murray, A., & Rhoden, A. (2022). Planetary Oceanography: Leveraging Expertise Among Earth and Planetary Science. Oceanography. doi:10.5670/oceanog.2021.410

June 2022Defining and Characterizing Habitable Environments in Ocean World Systems

Glass, J., , ., Dierssen, H., Glein, C., Schmidt, B., & Winebrenner, D. (2022). Defining and Characterizing Habitable Environments in Ocean World Systems. Oceanography. doi:10.5670/oceanog.2021.414

Leveraging Earth Hydrosphere Science in the Search for Life on Ocean Worlds

Hoehler, T., , ., Bowman, J., Craft, K., Willis, P., & Winebrenner, D. (2022). Leveraging Earth Hydrosphere Science in the Search for Life on Ocean Worlds. Oceanography. doi:10.5670/oceanog.2021.412

Variability in Titan’s Mesospheric HCN and Temperature Structure as Observed by ALMA

Thelen, A. E., Nixon, C. A., Cosentino, R. G., Cordiner, M. A., Teanby, N. A., Newman, C. E., … Charnley, S. B. (2022). Variability in Titan’s Mesospheric HCN and Temperature Structure as Observed by ALMA. The Planetary Science Journal, 3(6), 146. doi:10.3847/psj/ac7050

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