Pink, green, and square-shaped microbes can help us understand the limits of life on Earth and guide our search for life outside the planet.
Scientists who study how humans might travel through space found a handful of specific genes that give bacteria some cool superpowers.
A carbonaceous meteorite that fell in Costa Rica holds organic compounds that are preserved from the earliest stages of our solar system, 4.5 billion years ago. These compounds may give us clues as to how and when life could have begun.
Are microscopic mineral-eating microbes breaking down our mountains? They may be behind bedrock erosion.
It's hard to look for signs of life beyond Earth. It's a little easier if we assume that life out there is like Earth life. But what if it isn't?
Imagine what it would be like to be an astronaut landing on Mars for the first time. The red planet has little more than dust and rocks as well as some frozen water and gases in the air. If you wanted to build a shelter or structure, you would need to carry the materials from Earth in your cramped spaceship. What if we…
Scientists estimate that parts of Mars’ would be able to support up to one million microbes per kilogram of rock deep underground.
Space may be the last frontier of civilization, and Mars is an important planet for manned and unmanned space missions. Internationally, space programs are already looking into its possibilities. Since the surface of Mars is really different from Earth, a lot of research is dedicated to trying to simulate or replicate…
Have you heard of Panspermia? The hypothesis says that life originated somewhere else and travelled to Earth on rocks through space. #Tardigrades help us understand if it's possible!
How hard is it for evolution to produce intelligent life like humans? We don't really know, but some computational modelers tried to answer the question.