Astrobiologie

Astrobiology is a multidisciplinary field that studies the origin, evolution, distribution, and future of life in the universe. It combines biology with chemistry, geology, astronomy, and planetary science to explore how life arises, where habitable environments might exist beyond Earth, and how we can recognize signs of life elsewhere.

Key questions include how life began on Earth, whether life could emerge on other worlds, and what forms living systems might take under different environmental conditions. The field investigates the limits of life by studying extremophiles, prebiotic chemistry, and the geologic history of planets and moons. It also considers planetary habitability, which depends on factors such as liquid solvents, energy sources, protective atmospheres, and time.

Methods span laboratory simulations of chemical evolution, field studies in extreme environments, analysis of meteorites and samples, and astronomical observations. In exoplanet science, spectroscopy and transit measurements help assess atmospheric composition for potential biosignatures. Space missions to Mars, icy moons, and other bodies, as well as proposed sample-return and in situ experiments, broaden the empirical base for astrobiology.

The search for life includes biosignatures like atmospheric oxygen, methane, or other disequilibrium chemistries, and the broader inquiry into technosignatures indicating technologically capable civilizations. The field also addresses planetary protection to avoid forward or backward contamination and emphasizes cautious interpretation given the current observational limits.