Presenter(s):
Scott Perl, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology
Devan Nisson, Astrobiology Postdoctoral Program Fellow, NASA Ames Research Center
James Wray, Georgia Institute of Technology Main Campus
Tori Hoehler, NASA Ames Research Center
David Grinspoon, Planetary Science Institute Washington - PSI
Mark Fox-Powell, Open University
Andrew Steele, Carnegie Science
Joel Hurowitz, Stony Brook University
Una Natterman, Pioneer Labs
Eirini Poulaki, University of Texas at Austin
Peter Doran, Louisiana State University
Karen Lloyd, University of Southern California
Charles Cockell, University of Edinburgh
Ray Jayawardhana, Johns Hopkins University

Primary Convener:
Suniti Karunatillake, Louisiana State University

The search for life intersects many fields, including planetary (geo)science, astrobiology, and exoplanetary astronomy, against the broader backdrop of cosmic evolution. Collective community findings, consolidated into reports like the Keck Institute for Space Studies: Biology of Biosignature Detection, document underlying challenges. This specifically applies to conceptualizing life in a way that is simultaneously agnostic of Earth’s biosphere, unambiguously verifiable with current technology, and searchable across dramatically different planetary bodies. Aside from bulk-silicate and bulk-volatile bodies marking end members, little is known about how interior geology affects the shallower habitability, particularly for exoplanets. The critical zone of exchange between the atmosphere and crust, where much of Earth’s biosphere resides, likewise presents ill-defined parallels within and beyond the Solar System. Lessons learned from the pioneering Viking missions, and development of planetary protection policies, can clarify ways to advance the science traceability for life-seeking concepts – e.g., Mars Life Explorer and Search for Life – while identifying key limitations in knowledge and engineering. Consequently, community-wide discussions across the themes of (1) defining life and its evolution; (2) characterizing geologic controls on habitability; (3) and establishing minimum requirements to confirm the detection of extraterrestrial life will accelerate the field’s maturation and innovations in engineering.

Co-Sponsored Sessions:
ASM： American Society for Microbiology
AAS： American Astronomical Society
CGU： Canadian Geophysical Union
EGU： European Geosciences Union

Cross-Listed:
P - Planetary Sciences
SY - Science and Society
C - Cryosphere
B - Biogeosciences
MR - Mineral and Rock Physics
EP - Earth and Planetary Surface Processes