Habitability
Habitable Worlds are Found in Safe Places
When we think of exoplanets that may be able to support life, we hone in on the habitable zone. A…
Establishing a New Habitability Metric for Future Astrobiology Surveys
The search for exoplanets has grown immensely in recent decades thanks to next-generation observatories and instruments. The current census is…
Plants Would Still Grow Well Under Alien Skies
Photosynthesis changed Earth in powerful ways. When photosynthetic organisms appeared, it led to the Great Oxygenation Event. That allowed multicellular…
Dark Oxygen Could Change Our Understanding of Habitability
The discovery of dark oxygen at an abyssal plain on the ocean floor generated a lot of interest. Could this…
How Vegetation Could Impact the Climate of Exoplanets
The term 'habitable zone' is a broad definition that serves a purpose in our age of exoplanet discovery. But the…
Ocean Salinity Affects Earth’s Climate. How About on Exoplanets?
There's a link between Earth's ocean salinity and its climate. Salinity can have a dramatic effect on the climate of…
Elliptical Orbits Could be Essential to the Habitability of Rocky Planets
A seismic shift occurred in astronomy during the Scientific Revolution, beginning with 16th-century polymath Copernicus and his proposal that the…
Habitable Planet’s Orbiting Red Dwarf Suns Could at Risk from Far-Ultraviolet Radiation
The question of whether or not red dwarf stars can support habitable planets has been subject to debate for decades.…
Planetary Habitability Depends on its Star’s Magnetic Field
The extrasolar planet census recently passed a major milestone, with 5500 confirmed candidates in 4,243 solar systems. With so many…
The Ultraviolet Habitable Zone Sets a Time Limit on the Formation of Life
The field of extrasolar planet studies has grown exponentially in the past twenty years. Thanks to missions like Kepler, the…