News: The toxic surface of Mars
The ASB’s Jennifer Wadsworth, along with Charles Cockell, at the UK Centre for Astrobiology have found that the surface of Mars may be even less hospitable than previously thought. When they exposed perchlorates (common compounds on the Martian surface) to high levels of ultraviolet (UV) radiation similar to the flux at the surface of Mars, they became bacteriocidal. This suggests that the surface of Mars would be even less suitable for life than previously thought. However, life may still find a home a few metres beneath the surface, where it would be shielded from UV radiation. The...
Read MoreBarrie Jones Award 2017
The Astrobiology Society of Britain and the Open University are delighted to announce that Dr Louisa Preston has been chosen to accept the second biennial Barrie Jones Award. That award is intended to reward scientists who have made an outstanding contribution to society through outreach and/or education work in astrobiology, and was established to commemorate the life of Prof Barrie Jones (1941 – 2014), who spent most of his career at the Open University, where he dedicated much of his time to public engagement and outreach, as well as leading an outstanding research career. Dr...
Read MoreASB7: Registration Open
Registration and abstract submission for the 7th Biennial ASB Conference (ASB7) is now open! With ASB7, the Astrobiology Society of Britain continues its objective of promoting discussion on UK astrobiology interests in research, education and outreach. The ASB is pleased to announce that this 7th ASB conference will take place at The Open University, Milton Keynes, on 13-14 September 2017, focusing on the topic of habitability beyond the Earth. The deadline for registration and abstract submission is now the 2nd August. For more information and to register, please...
Read MoreSocial & Conceptual Issues in Astrobiology
SoCIA 2018: Social and Conceptual Issues in Astrobiology The second meeting of a new academic group devoted to the exploration of broad questions surrounding the search for life beyond Earth and the future of life in space (SoCIA: Social and Conceptual Issues in Astrobiology) will be held on 13th – 15th April 2018 at the University of Nevada, Reno. The emphasis of the meeting is on issues relevant to the underlying science, but that cannot be fully addressed by science alone. These range from social and ethical questions such as “What are our ethical obligations to alien life?” and...
Read MoreConference: IAU Astrobiology 2017, Chile
After the successful joint meeting with ISSOL in Nara, Japan in 2014, the IAU Commission F.3 will meet again in Coyhaique, Chile in November, 2017. This key meeting fosters interdisciplinary collaborations for the advancement of Astrobiology, welcoming researchers from disciplines as diverse as astrophysics, biology, geology, humanities, and sociology, among others. Astrobiology 2017 welcomes the submission of abstracts for original contribution to the discipline in the following scientific categories and subcategories: Star and planet formation. Extrasolar planets / Habitable zones and...
Read More