Odyssey Finds Large Concentrations of Water on Mars [3-4-2002]
The first results from the Mars Odyssey are in, and they reveal that the Southern Hemisphere of the Red Planet has a lot of water ice just below the surface.

Earth from Afar: A Tiny Flickering Dot [2-27-2002]
With over 70 planets identified around distant stars, astronomers are now looking for ways to classify which ones are most like Earth that is to say, the ones most likely with biological potential.

Clues to the Last Common Ancestor [2-25-2002]
Molecular detectives have traced human ancestry back to the so-called Mitochondrial Eve, the last female common ancestor. More recent research has posited a Y-chromosome Adam, the last male common ancestor.

Genetic Alchemy: Turning Lobsters into Fruit Flies [2-22-2002]
Biologists at the University of California, San Diego, now have genetic evidence that explains how such drastic alterations to body plans were able to occur during the early evolution of animals.

Warm-nosed Robot Breaks the Ice [2-20-2002]
An adventurous science team recently returned from the deep Norwegian glacial fields, having tested an instrument which may one day be used to explore areas beneath the frozen surfaces of other worlds.

From Lightbulbs to Life [2-15-2002]
A one-celled organism that lives in deep-sea volcanic vents has developed an alternative metabolism that uses tungsten - an element popularly used to make lightbulb filaments.

Interview with Michael Meyer [2-13-2002]
In a recent interview with Kathleen Connell of the NASA Ames Research Center in Mountain View, CA, Michael Meyer discusses the past, present, and future of NASA's Astrobiology program.

The Great Dying [2-12-2002]
250 million years ago something unknown wiped out most life on our planet. Now scientists are finding buried clues to the mystery inside tiny capsules of cosmic gas.

Earthshine [2-6-2002]
When the crescent moon is just a sliver each month, the phrase--'old moon in the young moon's arms'-- poetically describes a marvel of nature.

Digital Zookeepers Take a Census [2-1-2002]
Cataloguing the taxonomy of an entire planet's history, a 'digital zoo' holds great promise for resolving century-old debates about how the Earth got to be such a rich spawning ground for life's diversity.

Living in the Dark [1-30-2002]
Over the past several years, scientists have discovered life in the most unusual places. From rocky abodes deep underground, to hot volcanic vents under the seas, there seems to be no place on Earth that life doesn't exist.

The Tagish Lake Meteorite: "Like Sampling the Surface of a Comet"
[1-28-2002]
A scientific consortium of 4 universities and NASA is now trying to uncover the debris and sample the early solar system's unique chemistry.

NASA Scientist Finds Some Meteorites Not Sugar-free
[1-25-2002]
A discovery by a NASA scientist of sugar and several related organic compounds in two carbonaceous meteorites provides the first evidence that another fundamental building block of life on Earth may have come from outer space.

Bugs From Hell [1-23-2002]
Geochemists and microbiologists are delving into the details of extreme biochemistry deep within the Earth, where chemical and metabolic processes go at glacial pace, and life appears to be completely disconnected from the photosynthesis-based biological cycles that dominate surface life.

In Search of E.T.'s Breath [1-18-2002]
Advanced space telescopes might soon probe far-off worlds for the chemical signatures of alien life.

Living on Fool's Gold [1-16-2002]
Reseachers study chemolithotrophy bacteria that survive by getting its energy by oxidizing pyrite, also known as fool's gold'.

Life without Volcanic Heat [1-11-2002]
An 18-story undersea vent off the Atlantic, near what has been called the 'Lost City', has recently revealed itself as ripe with exotic microbial life.

Evidence of bacteria on Europa? [1-9-2002]
Jupiter's moon Europa is thought to be one of the most likely abodes for microscopic life in our solar system. The ice-covered world may have liquid water, energy, and organic compounds - all three of the ingredients necessary for life to survive.

Water on Mars: Not So Ancient, After All [1-4-2002]
When Mars Global Surveyor began mapping Mars in sharp detail early in 1999, it disclosed startling evidence that water has shaped martian landforms within the past 10 million years.

Jurassic Spark: Early Ancestor of Mammals Found [1-2-2002]
What is nearly 200 million years old, furry, weighed less than a paper clip and scurried beneath the feet of dinosaurs? A team of fossil-finders, led by researchers at Pittsburgh's Carnegie Museum of Natural History, suggest the answer may include one of your relatives - a distant cousin of modern mammals.

Scientists Find Evidence of Ancient Microbial Life on Mars [12-31-2001]
An international team of researchers has discovered compelling evidence that magnetite crystals in the Martian meteorite ALH84001 are of biological origin.

The Oldest Life on Land [12-28-2001]
Fossilized remnants of a microbial mat provide evidence that life existed on land as early as 2.6 to 2.7 billion years ago. The findings suggest that an oxygen atmosphere and a protective ozone layer were in place around Earth by that time.

One-Handed Life [12-26-2001]
Scientists with the NASA Astrobiology Institute have created self-replicating molecules that produce only "left-handed" molecules or only "right-handed" molecules.The findings may help explain why life is based on left-handed amino acids.

Earth's Oldest Mineral Grains Suggest an Early Start for Life [12-24-2001]
The hills of Western Australia are home to zircons nearly four-and-a-half billion years old. The tiny crystals may change our understanding of the newly-formed Earth.

The Heat is On: Asteroid Belt Found around Nearby Star [12-19-2001]
When unusually warm dust was first discovered around a nearby star, called zeta Leporis, infrared astronomers began hunting in detail for the heat source.

The First Sulfur Eaters [12-17-2001]
Scientists have found indications of a type of bacteria that consume sulfate and produce sulfide as a waste product, possibly one of the oldest known life forms on the planet.

Test-tube RNA [12-14-2001]
Research done by scientists at the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research offers insights into evolutionary origins of life.

NASA's Global Surveyor Sees Possible Climate Change on Mars
[12-10-2001]
The planet Mars we know today is a cold, dry, desert world, but suppose the martian climate is changing even now, year to year and decade to decade?

Atmosphere of an Extrasolar Planet Detected for the First Time [12-5-2001]
Astronomers have made the first direct detection and chemical analysis of an atmosphere of a planet that exists outside our solar system.

Doubts About ALH84001: The JSC Mars Meteorite Team Responds
[12-3-2001]
A response by the JSC Mars Meteorite Team regarding a paper "Magnetite morphology and life on Mars" by Buseck et al. that appears in the 19 November 2001 issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Café Methane [11-30-2001]
In recent years, researchers discovered life also thrives in other, much colder, lightless deep-sea ecosystems besides hydrothermal vents.

Eating Kerogen [11-28-2001]
A team of researchers discovered that microorganisms in Kentucky's New Albany Shale are eating kerogen.

Dedication of the Carl Sagan Center [11-26-2001]
NASA Ames Research Center dedicates a site for the Carl Sagan Center for the Study of Life in the Cosmos.

Evidence of Martian life dealt critical blow [11-23-2001]
There may have once been (and perhaps still is) life on Mars, but the evidence for it is barely stirring.

Europe Heads for Mars [11-14-2001]
The Beagle 2, a compact, lightweight lander carried on the European Space Agency's (ESA) Mars Express, will search for signs of life on the red planet.

Why Microbes Matter [11-2-2001]
Research of possible microbial life on Mars can lead to advances in biotechnology and medicine while, at the same time, bringing us closer to understanding our origins.

The Invasion of the Deep-sea Microbes [10-31-2001]
The microscopic life around hydrothermal vents may have an ancient heritage -- genetic comparisons suggest that modern vent microbes are close kin to the earliest forms of life on Earth.

Glass Munchers under the Sea [10-29-2001]
A team of researchers recently announced that they have found the deepest-living microbes on the planet that eats into rock at the bottom of the sea floor.

The USA Returns to Mars [10-26-2001]
NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft reached Mars and was captured into orbit after a successful main engine burn.

The Three Domains of Life [10-22-2001]
When scientists first started to classify life, everything was designated as either an animal or a plant. But as new forms of life were discovered and our knowledge of life on Earth grew, the original classification was not sufficient enough to organize the diversity and complexity of life.

Titan: Biological Birthplace? [10-19-2001]
Saturn's giant moon Titan, cloaked in a thick nitrogen atmosphere laced with hydrocarbons, could provide a laboratory in the sky for scientists seeking insight into the origins of life.

Photosynthesis: Take It or Leave It [10-17-2001]
A serendipitous examination of ocean waters last year brought a big surprise for a team of US and Canadian scientists, a surprise that's causing marine ecologists to rethink the details of how ocean ecosystems function.

Carbonaceous Clues to the Early Solar System [10-12-2001]
Carbonaceous chondrite meteorites contain vital clues to the evolution of carbon compounds in our solar system preceding the origin of life.

Space Bones [10-10-2001]
Weightlessness sure looks like a lot of fun, but prolonged exposure to zero-G in space can have some negative side effects -- like the weakening of human bones.

Finding Distant Worlds [10-3-2001]
We know that there are at least 75 planets outside our own solar system, orbiting their distant stars. Although we have never seen any of these planets with our own eyes, several different techniques exist to detect these extrasolar planets.

Update on a New Photosynthetic Protein [10-1-2001]
A recently discovered pigment that converts light into energy occurs in microbes throughout the world's oceans.

Evolution's Double Take [9-28-2001]
The origin of hydrogenosomes has been debated for some time. Some researchers believe that hydrogenosomes have repeatedly evolved from mitochondria in the course of evolution.

Cometary Closeup [9-26-2001]
In a risky flyby, NASA's ailing Deep Space 1 spacecraft successfully navigated past a comet, giving researchers the best look ever inside the glowing core of icy dust and gas.

Making the Moon [9-24-2001]
The "giant impact" theory, first proposed in the mid-1970s to explain how the Moon formed, has now received a major boost. New computer simulations demonstrate how a single impact could yield the current Earth-Moon system.

A Greener Planetary Greenhouse [9-14-2001]
In recent years Earth-orbiting satellites have seen plants growing more vigorously than usual over northern parts of our planet.

Genomics Meets Geology [9-10-2001]
Chemist Steven A. Benner and his colleagues are combining chemistry, geological history and paleontology in an approach aimed at better understanding how life on Earth works now and how it evolved.

Evidence of Recent Climate Change on Mars [9-7-2001]
New images of the surface of Mars provide the first direct evidence that the climate of Mars has changed during the last 100,000 years. This is much earlier than previous estimates, which calculated a climate change dating back hundreds of millions of years.

Jupiter-Size Planet Found Orbiting Star in Big Dipper [9-4-2001]
A team of astronomers has found a Jupiter-size planet in a circular orbit around a faint nearby star, raising intriguing prospects of finding a solar system with characteristics similar to our own.

Scientists Hunt For Light Flashes From Extraterrestrial Civilizations [8-31-2001]
Astronomers are broadening the search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI) by looking for powerful light pulses coming from other star systems.

Rare Canadian Meteorite Tagged as First of Its Kind Found on Earth [8-27-2001]
In a triumph for space geology, a team of scientists said they found a rare meteorite, it's the first of its kind to be found on Earth -- a dark and rare type called a D asteroid.

Guerrero Negro [8-24-2001]
Guerrero Negro is a popular destination for ecotourists to gaze at the gray whales, but scientists go to investigate an ecosystem full of microscopic organisms that hold important clues to what life was like on early Earth.

Having a Ball on Mars [8-22-2001]
An amusing accident in the Mojave desert has inspired a new kind of Mars rover -- a two-story high beach ball that can descend to the Martian surface, land safely, and explore vast stretches of the Red Planet.

Advances in our Understanding of Life [8-20-2001]
Over the past two decades, advances in a number of scientific disciplines have helped us better understand the nature and evolution of life on Earth. These scientific developments also have helped lay the foundation for astrobiology, opening up new possibilities for the existence of life in the Solar System and beyond.

Study Doubles Number of Potential Earth-Like Planets [8-17-2001]
The standard model for the formation of rocky planets like Earth appears to be on solid ground even when applied to systems in which two stars orbit each other, according to a new study.

Water on Mars: Not So Ancient, After All [8-15-2001]
When Mars Global Surveyor began mapping Mars in sharp detail early in 1999, it disclosed startling evidence that water has shaped martian landforms within the past 10 million years.

Gravity Hurts (so Good) [8-12-2001]
Strange things can happen to the human body when people venture into space -- and the familiar pull of gravity vanishes.

Life on Ice [8-10-2001]
From Arctic sea ice to Antarctic lakes and dry valleys, scientists study microbes that tolerate freezing temperatures on Earth to learn where to look for life on other worlds.

Extrasolar Planets with Earth-like Orbits [8-8-2001]
Scientists are discovering extrasolar planets with Earth-like orbits. Could it be possible for Earth-like orbiting planets to habor life just like Earth?

Are We Alone? Where are our Nearest Neighbors? [8-6-2001]
Edward Weiler, NASA's Associate Administrator for Space Science discusses the search for life in the Universe. Are we alone?

Rethinking Viking: The Life on Mars Debate Rages On [8-3-2001]
Twenty-five years ago, the Viking mission scooped up Martian soil and analyzed it for signs of life. When Viking found no organic compounds, many scientists concluded that the Red Planet was lifeless. Today these conclusions are being reexamined.

Did Tectonics Get an Early Start? [8-1-2001]
A recent discovery near the Great Wall in China adds new support to the theory that plate tectonics began very early in the Earth's history.

SETI and the Search for Life [7-30-2001]
Christopher F. Chyba of the SETI Institute discusses the search for life in the Universe. Are we alone?

Starved for Nitrogen [7-27-2001]
A team of researchers, including a NASA scientist, reports that an early-life nitrogen crisis may have triggered a critical evolutionary leap about 2 billion years ago.

Happy Anniversary, Viking Lander [7-25-2001]
On July 20, 1976, NASA's Viking 1 lander touched down safely on the surface of Mars, revealing an alien world that continues to puzzle scientists and tempt explorers.

The Search for Life in the Universe [7-23-2001]
Neil deGrasse Tyson discusses the search for life in the Universe. Are we alone?

NASA Picks Mars Scout Mission Ideas for Further Study [7-20-2001]
NASA recently selected the ten most promising "Scout" mission concepts from among the 43 proposed for possible launch to Mars in 2007.

Mars: Dead or Alive? [7-18-2001]
Recent research on the planet has convinced some scientists that Mars may still be geologically active.

Water Worlds [7-16-2001]
As an alien sun blazes through its death throes, it is apparently vaporizing a surrounding swarm of comets, releasing a huge cloud of water vapor.

Life Down Under [7-13-2001]
Recent work by Christopher Chyba (SETI Institute) and Kevin Hand (Stanford University) suggests that there may be ways to nourish biology in watery environments where the Sun's rays don't penetrate.

How Small Can Life Be? [7-9-2001]
As advanced microscopes enable us to peer deeper into the realms of inner space, biologists have been faced with a vexing question: Is there a size limit on life?

The Meaning of Life [7-6-2001]
Sitting beneath a dark night sky, looking up at the vast array of stars, what human has not wondered, "Are we alone?"

Wandering Mystery Planets [7-2-2001]
Scientists using the Hubble Space Telescope have spotted mysterious planet-sized objects apparently running loose in a distant cluster of stars.

Simulating a Martian Colony in the Arctic [6-28-2001]
Once again, an island in the Canadian high arctic, a polar desert of a world, will serve this summer as a little bit of Mars on Earth.

New Signs of Recent Water at Mars [6-25-2001]
Piles of crater-topped debris snapped by NASA's Mars orbiter and caused by the teakettle explosion of water through volcanic lava flows at the planet's equator are the best evidence yet for recent liquid water at the Red Planet, a team of scientists say.

Europa: Chewy or Crunchy? [6-22-2001]
For geophysicist William B. Moore, the question of whether life exists on Jupiter's moon Europa boils down to whether the moon's center is chewy or crunchy.

Mars Meteorite Discovered in Oman Desert [6-20-2001]
The meteorite, known as SAU 094, could help determine if life ever existed on Mars.

A Pregnancy Test for Mars [6-18-2001]
The test that tells women they are pregnant might also be able to find signs of living organisms on Mars.

Do We Know What Killed the Dinosaurs? [6-15-2001]
What killed the dinosaurs? Many geologists and paleontologists now think that a large asteroid or comet impacting the Earth must have caused a global catastrophe that led to this extensive loss of life.

Swept Away: Evidence of Erosion on Mars [6-13-2001]
Massive erosion shaped the surface of Mars, according to planetary scientists at Washington University in St. Louis.

Jurassic Spark: Early Ancestor of Mammals Found [6-8-2001]
What is nearly 200 million years old, furry, weighed less than a paper clip and scurried beneath the feet of dinosaurs? A team of fossil-finders, led by researchers at Pittsburgh's Carnegie Museum of Natural History, suggest the answer may include one of your relatives - a distant cousin of modern mammals.

Watching Earth Breathe [6-6-2001]
The first continuous global observations of the biological engine that drives life on Earth will be used by scientists to study the fate of carbon in the atmosphere, the length of terrestrial growing seasons and the vitality of the ocean's food web.

Cold Clouds and Water in Space [6-4-2001]
Astronomers have for the first time determined how much of the water in cold regions of space is in gaseous form and how much is frozen. This is especially interesting because these regions are the future birthplaces of low-mass stars like the Sun, and solar systems like our own.

Tropical Glaciers [6-1-2001]
Glacial deposits that formed on tropical land areas during snowball Earth episodes around 600 million years ago, lead to questions about how the glaciers that left the deposits were created. Now, Penn State geoscientists believe that these glaciers could only have formed after the Earth's oceans were entirely covered by thick sea ice.

Did Hades Freeze Over? [5-30-2001]
Initially, the surface of our planet was a fiery, molten stew. Within a few million years, the crust cooled and water vapor rained down to form the oceans, where life may have made it's first appearance.

A Taste for Comet Water [5-25-2001]
When Comet LINEAR broke apart last year it revealed what many scientists thought all along: Water in Earth's oceans could have come from outer space.

Growing Glowing Martian Mustard [5-23-2001]
A team of University of Florida scientists has genetically modified a tiny plant to send reports back from Mars in a most unworldly way: by emitting an eerie, fluorescent glow.

The Mass Extinction that Left the Dinosaurs Standing [5-21-2001]
A mass extinction about 200 million years ago destroyed at least half of the species on Earth, but left the dinosaurs standing.

Galactic Habitable Zones [5-18-2001]
Our Milky Way Galaxy is unusual in that it is one of the most massive galaxies in the nearby universe. Our Solar System also seems to have qualities that make it rather unique. These qualities make the Sun one of the few stars in the Galaxy capable of supporting complex life.

Raising Baby Tubeworms [5-13-2001]
For years scientists have wondered how giant red-tipped tubeworms and other exotic marine life found at hydrothermal vents get from place to place and how long their larva survive in a cold, eternally dark place. Now biologist Lauren Mullineaux and colleagues have helped answer those questions.

The Birth and Death of Embryonic Planets [5-11-2001]
Researchers study how planets form around stars in the Orion Nebula, hoping to understand better how planets in our own solar system formed.

Life's Baby Steps [5-9-2001]
Billions of years ago, amino acids somehow linked together to form chainlike molecules. Now scientists have discovered what may be a key step in this process - a step that has baffled researchers for more than a half a century.

How Jupiter Got Big [5-7-2001]
How did the largest planet in our solar system form? New theories on how planets like Jupiter form put traditional theories to the test.

Unpuzzling Proteins [5-4-2001]
Thanks to a new supercomputer, scientists may be a step closer to understanding one of nature's more difficult puzzles.

Space Weather on Mars [5-2-2001]
Future human explorers of Mars can leave their umbrellas back on Earth, but perhaps they shouldn't forget their Geiger counters! A NASA experiment en route to the Red Planet aims to find out.

Reflections From a Warm Little Pond [4-27-2001]
Scientists theorize possible scenarios on how life could have first originated on Earth.

Life As We Didn't Know It [4-25-2001]
Biologists always thought life required the Sun's energy, until they found an ecosystem that thrives in complete darkness.

Keeping "Cool" at Deep-Sea Vents [4-23-2001]
Using a novel detector attached to a submarine, a research team led by University of Delaware marine scientists has determined that water chemistry controls the location and distribution of two species of weird worms that inhabit deep-sea hydrothermal vent sites.

Was Johnny Appleseed a Comet? [4-20-2001]
A new experiment suggests that comet impacts could have sowed the seeds of life on Earth billions of years ago.

Roses for the Red Planet [4-18-2001]
Scientists discuss the importance and the possible risks of seeding the Red Planet.

Oily fossils provide clues to the evolution of flowers [4-16-2001]
A team of Stanford geochemists has found evidence that flowering plants may have evolved 250 million years ago - long before the first pollen grain appeared in the fossil record.

Focus on Europa [4-13-2001]
Scientists from a variety of disciplines met recently to consider the possibility of life on Europa, and to plan how to look for it.

Twenty Thousand Leagues under the Sea [4-11-2001]
An expedition to geysers on the floor of the Indian Ocean is studying how animals there evolve and disperse geographically.

Life's Chemical Fingerprints [4-9-2001]
Using a technique called Raman spectroscopy, researchers are developing instruments that may one day search for life on Mars, Europa, or Callisto.

Return to the Red Planet [4-06-2001]
On Saturday, April 7, NASA's next mission to Mars is set to launch. The 2001 Mars Odyssey will investigate the history of water on the Red Planet.

Back-to-School Time for Astrobiologists [4-04-2001]
NATO and NASA are joining forces to host an Advanced Study Institute for students and practitioners of astrobiology.

Taking the Temperature of a Martian Meteorite [4-02-2001]
A chunk of Mars that was hurled to Earth remained cool enough to preserve any microorganisms aboard. So says a group of researchers who have examined martian meteorite ALH84001.

The Lure of Hematite [3-30-2001]
On rusty-red Mars, a curious deposit of gray-colored hematite (a mineral cousin of common household rust) could hold the key to the mystery of elusive Martian water.

Mars or Europa: Where Does Life Exist? [3-28-2001]
Leading experts including Jack Farmer and Bruce Jakosky of the NASA Astrobiology Institute discuss where and how best to conduct the hunt for life elsewhere in our solar system.

Can Liquid Water Exist on Present-day Mars? [3-26-2001]
Scientific consensus holds that liquid water cannot exist on the surface of Mars. But now a pair of scientists argue that liquid water in limited amounts and for limited times may indeed be present on Mars' surface.

NASA Astrobiology Institute Announces New Teams [3-23-2001]
NASA has selected four new teams to become part of the agency's Astrobiology Institute (NAI), a national and international research consortium that studies the origin, evolution, distribution and future of life on Earth and in the universe.

Evo Devo Learns a Larval Lesson [3-21-2001]
Scientists have studied the life history of animals, part of a field called development, for many decades. Other scientists have studied how life arose and evolved on Earth. For the first time since the early part of this century, the two fields are coming together, in a new discipline called "Evo Devo."

An Astronomy First: Telescopes Double-team Hawaiian Night Sky [3-19-2001]
Proving that two telescopes are better than one, NASA astronomers have gathered the first starlight obtained by linking two Hawaiian 10-meter telescopes.

Through Thick or Thin: Exploring Europa's Outer Layer of Ice [3-16-2001]
When NASA's Galileo spacecraft sent back images and data of the Jovian moon Europa, scientists began thinking seriously that life just might exist on this enigmatic, frozen world.

Looking for Signs of Life in Acid-washed Rocks [3-14-2001]
Extraordinary clues to the history of biological evolution on Earth often come from something as mundane as rocks. To better understand the close connection between life and geology - and how one affects the other - new laboratory methods are being developed to tease out the information that ancient rocks contain.

TNA World [3-12-2001]
DNA is the building block for life on Earth. But it is a highly complex molecule, and could not have arranged itself spontaneously. What did it develop from? Astrobiologists examine possible ancestors of DNA: nucleic acids called PNA, p-RNA, and TNA.

Ganymede's Liquid Past [3-9-2001]
Long swaths of bright, flat terrain on the surface of Jupiter's icy moon Ganymede may testify that water or slush emerged there about a billion years ago, say planetary scientists.

Some Like it Hot [3-7-2001]
NASA astrobiologist Jack Farmer studies microorganisms in the hot springs of Yellowstone and in hydrothermal vents on the ocean floor. His work may help NASA search for traces of life on Mars.

A Shortage of Planets [3-5-2001]
When they turned the Hubble Space Telescope on a distant globular cluster of stars, astronomers expected to find fifteen or twenty planets. They found zero.

Two Rovers in Search of a Landing Site [3-2-2001]
In the spring of 2003, NASA will send two rovers to Mars to search for signs of water in the planet's ancient past. But where exactly on Mars should they look for it?

Scientists Find Evidence of Ancient Microbial Life on Mars [2-28-2001]
An international team of researchers has discovered compelling evidence that magnetite crystals in the Martian meteorite ALH84001 are of biological origin.

Apocalypse Then [2-26-2001]
A violent collision with a space rock, like the one that doomed the dinosaurs, may have also caused our planet's greatest mass extinction 250 million years ago.

One-Handed Life [2-23-2001]
Scientists with the NASA Astrobiology Institute have created self-replicating molecules that produce only "left-handed" molecules or only "right-handed" molecules.The findings may help explain why life is based on left-handed amino acids.

Squaring Off with a Robotic Serpent [2-21-2001]
NASA engineers are developing an intelligent robot snake that can slither over or around obstacles and into cracks in a planet's surface. The "snakebot" may one day search for water and fossils on other planets.

Carbonated Mars [2-14-2001]
Here on Earth the only way to make carbonate rocks is with the aid of liquid water. Finding such rocks on Mars might prove, once and for all, that the barren Red Planet was once warm and wet.

A Visit to Cupid for Valentine's Day [2-12-2001]
On February 12, NEAR Shoemaker becomes the first spacecraft to land on an asteroid. Its findings may tell us something about our planet, our solar system, and solar systems beyond our own.

Seeing Mars through a Test Tube [2-9-2001]
By recreating the Martian surface in the laboratory, NASA scientists may have begun to answer two questions: why the Martian surface is so red, and why organic life has not yet been found there.

Looking for life, Astrobiologists Dive Deep [2-7-2001]
Coral-like mounds on the floor of a Canadian lake may make it easier someday to identify life on other planets.

The Oldest Life on Land [2-5-2001]
Fossilized remnants of a microbial mat provide evidence that life existed on land as early as 2.6 to 2.7 billion years ago. The findings suggest that an oxygen atmosphere and a protective ozone layer were in place around Earth by that time.

Jovian Moons [2-2-2001]
Jupiter's four largest moons were discovered by Galileo in 1610. Three of them might hold oceans of liquid water beneath their icy exteriors. Liquid water is a prerequisite for life.

Scientists Find Clues That Life Began in Deep Space [1-30-2001]
Duplicating the harsh conditions of space in their laboratory, NASA scientists have created primitive cells with membrane-like structures. These chemical compounds may have played a part in the origin of life.

Without Jupiter, Home Alone [1-29-2001]
The giant planet Jupiter swallows up asteroids and comets, or flings them into space. Without Jupiter, comet and asteroid impacts might have wiped out any life on Earth.

Mars Ocean Hypothesis Hits the Shore [1-26-2001]
Photographs of the Martian surface find no sign of a sea cliff along a possible ancient shoreline.

The Greening of the Red Planet [1-23-2001]
A hardy microbe from Earth may one day transform the barren ground of Mars into arable soil.

Thawing Mars [1-22-2001]
Greenhouse gases might one day be used to warm the cold surface of Mars, and make the planet habitable for humans.

Astrobiologists Find Evidence of Early Life on Land [1-18-2001]
Scientists with NASA's Astrobiology Institute have discovered evidence that microbial life emerged on land between 2.6 billion and 2.7 billion years ago, much earlier than previously thought.

The Dance of the Giant Planets [1-16-2001]
A team of planet hunters January 9th announced a discovery that will help researchers better understand planet migration and how planets' gravitational pulls influence each other.

Earth's Oldest Mineral Grains Suggest an Early Start for Life [1-11-2001]
The hills of Western Australia are home to zircons nearly four-and-a-half billion years old. The tiny crystals may change our understanding of the newly-formed Earth.

Terrestrial Powerhouses [1-9-2001]
A remarkable protein called bacteriorhodopsin converts light into metabolic energy. After 30 years of investigations, this protein has finally revealed some of its secrets.

Kepler Planet-finding Mission Selected for Discovery Program [1-8-2001]
NASA has selected the Kepler space telescope one of three candidates for NASA's next Discovery Program mission. Kepler will search for habitable Earth-size planets around stars beyond our solar system.

Martian Micromagnets [1-4-2001]
The Allan Hills meteorite from Mars is peppered with tiny magnetic crystals that on our planet are made only by bacteria.

More Distant Planets Discovered [12-28-2000]
Imagine discovering eight new worlds outside our solar system while the rest of the world is on summer vacation. See what's out of this world, thanks to the University of Texas at Austin's McDonald Observatory and the European Southern Observatory.

Evidence of ocean on Jupiter's moon Ganymede [12-21-2000]
Data from the Galileo space probe suggest that liquid water may lie beneath Ganymede's icy crust.

Titanic Moon: Orange Soup from Saturnian Turn [12-19-2000]
Researchers for the NASA Astrobiology Institute and Penn State have recently developed a new method that has improved our understanding of Titan's atmospheric chemistry.

Pyruving the Origin of Life [12-18-2000]
For the origin of life, chemical synthesis of pyruvic acid is a critical step. In a difficult experiment, Carnegie Institute/NAI researchers report that the natural synthesis of such compounds would occur wherever hot ocean vents pass through iron sulfide-containing crust.

Evidence Of Martian Land Of Lakes Discovered [12-14-2000]
Layers of sedimentary rock paint a portrait of an ancient Mars that may have featured numerous lakes and shallow seas.

New Images Suggest Present-day Source of Liquid Water on Mars [12-12-2000]
Using data from NASA's Mars Global Surveyor spacecraft, imaging scientists have observed features that suggest there may be current sources of liquid water at or near the surface of the red planet.

The Case of the Missing Water [12-11-2000]
Did an ancient flood cover the northern lowlands? Mars Orbiter images give a front row seat.

Back to the Surface: NASA's 2003 Mission to Mars [12-7-2000]
Two Mars rovers, one in May and the other in June of 2003 will land six months later at different locations. Both take on the daunting task of probing for water clues.

NASA Astrobiology Architect, Dr. Gerald Soffen, Remembered [12-4-2000]
NASA Scientist Dr. Gerald Soffen, who led the Viking science team that performed the first experiments on the surface of the planet Mars and a key architect of the Astrobiology Institute, is fondly remembered.

Mars Lakes [11-27-2000]
A 'young' Martian lake would be at least half-billion years old, but Martian deltas might not seem as remote as the present day desert.

Life Under Bombardment [11-27-2000]
Does Greenland give a clue as to whether life was seeded twice:  'stock' cultures surviving one big impact event? Life Under Bombardment looks for the evidence of our terrestrial past.

Leonid Meteors Yield Rich Astrobiology Research Results [11-27-2000]
In search of meteor showers, an airborne research mission indicates that the chemical precursors to life found in comet dust may well have survived a plunge into early Earth's atmosphere