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Is there life in the universe?Presentation by SL

The Study of Astrobiology

Habitable Zones

Drakes Equation

Current ResearchContent

The Study of AstroBiologyNo-not Alien hunting

Astrobiology: the study of the origin, evolution, distribution, and future of life in the universe

Includes searching for habitable environments in our Solar System, and planets outside of it, evidence of prebiotic chemistry and life on Mars, laboratory and field research into the origins and early evolution of life on Earth, and studies of the potential for life to adapt to challenges on Earth and in space

NASA has a program that was founded in 1996,but previously had studies in exobiology

Exobiology: The branch of science that deals with the possibility and likely nature of life on other planets or in spaceWhat is Astrobiology?

Life: that which distinguishes animals and plants from inorganic matter, including the capacity for growth, reproduction, functional activity, and continual change preceding death

Alien life- does NOT mean humanoid

There are several conditions that make a planet habitable:

TemperatureWaterAtmosphereEnergyNutrients

These signs are critical when distinguishing the likelihood of alien life

What are we looking for?

Factors that Make for a habitable PlanetReasonsTemperatureLow temperatures cause chemicals to react slowly, interfering with necessary reactions

Low temperatures freeze water, making liquid water unavailable.WaterChemicals a cell needs would be unable to dissolve or transport to the cellAtmosphereInsufficient gravity would be unable to hold an atmosphere, leaving the planet or moon without EnergyA lack of sunlight or too few of necessary chemicals that provide energy to cells, will cause organisms to dieNutrientsWithout chemicals to make proteins & carbohydrates, organisms cannot grow.

Habitable zone: the distance/range of distances from a star from which an orbiting planet can have liquid water on its surface. These distances may vary depending on the extent of the stars size, mass and luminosity.Our Solar Systems Habitable Zone

Drakes EquationProbability of sentient life

Frank Drake of the National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO) in Green Bank, West Virginia undertakes the first attempt to find extraterrestrial civilizations in 1960

Project Ozma had him listening for radio signals of intelligent life, for a period of 6 hours a day for four months,using the NRAO radio telescope-unsuccessfully

Within a year Green Bank hosts a meeting to explore the issue of extraterrestrial intelligence

Frank Drake is meant to come up with an agenda for the meeting-and thus devises the Drake Equation. Drakes Equation

This equation is used to give the probability of intelligent life forms within the universe.Drakes Equation

Letter MeaningsN = The number of broadcasting civilizations.

R = Average rate of formation of suitable stars (stars/year) in the Milky Way galaxy

fp = Fraction of stars that form planets

ne = Average number of habitable planets per star

fl = Fraction of habitable planets (ne) where life emerges

fi = Fraction of habitable planets with life where intelligent evolves

fc = Fraction of planets with intelligent life capable of interstellar communication

L = Years a civilization remains detectable

THE ANSWER IS:WE DONT KNOW!Well- we think 500 to 10,000 civilizations

Current ResearchWeve got a good track recordright?

Microbes in Arctic ice sheets have been helping researchers pinpoint evidence for similar microorganisms that could have evolved on Mars, the Jovian moon Europa, or Saturns moon Enceladus

With support from the NASA ASTEP program, a team of scientists recently investigated the western edge of the Greenland ice sheet in order to study the release of methane as the ice sheet recedes

Careful isotopic analysis are helping them determine if the methane comes directly or indirectly from methanogenic microbes

European countries have also combined scientific and financial resources to form the 18-nation European Space Agency (ESA), which has some collaborative initiatives with NASA focused on astrobiology

In 2016, they expect to launch the NASA/ESA ExoMars/Trace Gas Orbiter (EMTGO) mission, part of the ExoMars Rover Project.

The objective is to characterize the chemical composition of the Martian atmosphere, particularly trace species

Scientists are developing newer, better technology for research that involves cheap, compact, rugged instruments that can survive and function in unearth-like environments ,along with utilizing solar energy

The next generation of Mars rovers will likely use mass spectrometers to search for signs of life

Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energys Idaho National Laboratory (INL) developed total ion control (TIC), the method makes it easier to direct ions along specified paths.

Current systems require airflow maintained by heavy, energy-gobbling pumps.

Researchers at Harvard and MIT have initiated a project to study whether life on Earth might have descended from Martian organisms carried here by flying objects like meteors, called Search for Extraterrestrial Genomes (SETG)

As an example of the adaptability of microbial organisms, the team pointed to the discovery of the first known organism that can thrive and reproduce using arsenic instead of phosphorus in its cells.

December 2011, a NASA team isolated the bacteria from Mono Lake, CA, chosen because of its high salinity, alkalinity, and arsenic levels.

The NASA investigators said their data showed evidence for arsenate in macromolecules that normally contain phosphate, most notably nucleic acids and proteins.More Research!

So- what do you think?Should we be spending time on astrobiology?

http://www.dailycollage.com/2004/09/11/alien-vs-predator/

http://www.veronicabelmont.com/tag/star-trek/

http://www.legitreviews.com/article/628/1/

http://www.jokeroo.com/pictures/other/milky-way-galaxy.html

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/space/7972538/Are-we-living-in-a-designer-universe.html

http://www.genengnews.com/insight-and-intelligenceand153/biotechnology-instruments-being-used-to-detect-alien-life/77899415/

http://leilabattison.wordpress.com/2010/08/20/intelligent-life-apply-elsewhere/

http://www.technologyreview.com/blog/arxiv/24793/

http://worldofweirdthings.com/2010/09/27/why-youre-most-probably-not-part-alien/

http://www.cosmosmagazine.com/features/online/3384/qa-with-frank-drake

Picture Links:

Ford, Steve. "What Is The Drake Equation?" What Is The Drake Equation? SETI League. Web. 30 May 2012. http://www.setileague.org/general/drake.htm

Habitable Zones Planets in the Solar System. Planet Facts. Web. 31 May 2012.