Astrobiology: Life in the Universe

NASA Astrobiology Institute (NAI)


  1. Now showing: Years 2007, 2008 projects that addressed Astrobiology Roadmap Objective 5.3

  2. Roadmap Goal 5: Understand the evolutionary mechanisms and environmental limits of life

    Objective 5.3: Biochemical adaptation to extreme environments

    5. Life in Extreme Environments

    Year: 2008 / TEAM: CIW / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 3.1, 5.1, 5.3, 6.2, 7.1

    6. Molecular and Isotopic Biosignatures

    Year: 2008 / TEAM: CIW / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1, 3.1, 4.1, 4.2, 5.3, 6.1, 7.1, 7.2

    7. Astrobiotechnology

    Year: 2008 / TEAM: CIW / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1, 2.2, 3.1, 3.2, 5.3, 6.2, 7.1

    Adaptation to salinity in microbial communities

    Year: 2007 / TEAM: CAL / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1, 3.2, 4.1, 5.3, 7.2

    Amino Acid Preservation in Saline-Lake Sediments and Mars-Simulant Regolith

    Year: 2008 / TEAM: IPTAI / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1, 3.2, 5.1, 5.3, 7.1

    Application of U-tube and fiber-optic distributed temperature sensor to characterize the chemical and physical properties of a deep permafrost and sub-permafrost environment at High Lake, Nunavut, Canada.

    Year: 2008 / TEAM: IPTAI / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1, 5.2, 5.3, 7.1

    Chemistry and biology of ultramafic-hosted alkaline springs

    Year: 2007 / TEAM: UH / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 5.3

    Chemistry and biology of ultramafic-hosted alkaline springs

    Year: 2008 / TEAM: UH / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 5.3, 7.2

    Construction of a borehole apparatus for sampling of fluids and microbes in sub-permafrost groundwater, Nunavut Territory, Canada

    Year: 2007 / TEAM: IPTAI / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1, 2.2, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3

    DDF: Geomicrobiology of a Unique Ice-Sulfur Spring Ecosystem in the High Arctic

    Year: 2008 / TEAM: CUB / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 6.1, 7.1, 7.2

    Describing the anaerobic thermophilic microbial community: A metagenomic strategy

    Year: 2007 / TEAM: MBL / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 4.1, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3

    Design, construction and testing of a Cavity-Ring Down Spectrometer for determination of the concentration and isotopic composition of methane

    Year: 2008 / TEAM: IPTAI / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1, 2.2, 3.3, 4.1, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 6.1, 6.2, 7.1, 7.2

    Drilling a borehole for sampling of gases, water, and microbes in sub-permafrost groundwater at High Lake, Nunavut Territory, Canada

    Year: 2007 / TEAM: IPTAI / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1, 2.2, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 6.1, 6.2

    Earthbound microbial and geological robotic based observations for Mars

    Year: 2007 / TEAM: CAL / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1, 2.2, 5.1, 5.3

    Earthbound microbial and geological robotic based observations for Mars

    Year: 2008 / TEAM: CAL / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1, 2.2, 5.1, 5.3

    Ecology of a Hawaiian lava cave microbial mat

    Year: 2008 / TEAM: UH / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 6.1

    Ecosystem to Biosphere Modeling

    Year: 2007 / TEAM: ARC / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 4.1, 5.3, 6.1, 7.2

    Ecosystem to Biosphere Modeling

    Year: 2008 / TEAM: ARC / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 4.1, 5.3

    Environmental genomics reveals a single species ecosystem deep within the Earth.

    Year: 2008 / TEAM: IPTAI / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 6.2

    Evolution of abiotic environments to ecosystems

    Year: 2007 / TEAM: IPTAI / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1, 2.2, 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 6.1, 6.2, 7.1, 7.2

    Examination of the Microbial Diversity Found in Ice Cores (Brenchley)

    Year: 2007 / TEAM: PSU / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 6.1, 6.2, 7.1

    Examination of the Microbial Diversity Found in Ice Cores (Brenchley)

    Year: 2008 / TEAM: PSU / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 6.1, 6.2, 7.1

    Experimental Study of Radiolytic Oxidation of Pyrite as a source of sulfate and hydrogen to sustain microbial metabolism

    Year: 2007 / TEAM: IPTAI / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1, 2.2, 3.1, 3.3, 5.3, 6.1, 6.2

    FMARS Long Duration Mission: a simulation of manned Mars explora

    Year: 2007 / TEAM: UH / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1, 4.3, 5.3

    FMARS Long Duration Mission: a simulation of manned Mars exploration in an analogue environment, Devon Island, Canada

    Year: 2007 / TEAM: UH / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1, 4.3, 5.3

    Functional Genomics of Thioredoxins in Halobacterium sp. NRC-1

    Year: 2007 / TEAM: CUB / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 3.2, 5.1, 5.3

    Functional Genomics of Thioredoxins in Halobacterium sp. NRC-1

    Year: 2008 / TEAM: CUB / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 3.1, 3.2, 5.1, 5.3

    Genomics of sulfidic cave extremophiles (Supplement to NNA04CC06A)

    Year: 2007 / TEAM: PSU / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 5.1, 5.3, 6.2

    Genomics of sulfidic cave extremophiles (Supplement to NNA04CC06A)

    Year: 2008 / TEAM: PSU / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 5.1, 5.3, 6.2

    Geomicrobiology of neutrophilic iron-oxidizing bacteria at Loihi Seamount

    Year: 2007 / TEAM: UH / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 6.1

    High Lake Gossan deposit: An Arctic analogue for ancient Martian surficial processes?

    Year: 2008 / TEAM: IPTAI / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 6.1, 7.1

    High-temperature, High-pressure Microcosms to Study the Bio-molecular Basis for the Upper Temperature Limits to Life

    Year: 2007 / TEAM: CIW / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 1.2, 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 3.4, 4.1, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 6.1, 7.2

    Hydrology and microbiology of active springs

    Year: 2007 / TEAM: CAL / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1, 5.2, 5.3, 7.2

    Icelandic subglacial lakes

    Year: 2008 / TEAM: UH / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1, 4.1, 5.3, 6.2

    Identifying microbial life at crustal rock-water interfaces

    Year: 2007 / TEAM: CUB / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 4.1, 5.2, 5.3, 6.1, 7.1

    Identifying microbial life at crustal rock-water interfaces

    Year: 2008 / TEAM: CUB / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 5.2, 5.3, 6.1, 6.2, 7.2

    Interplanetary Pioneers

    Year: 2007 / TEAM: ARC / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 5.3, 6.2

    Interplanetary Pioneers

    Year: 2008 / TEAM: ARC / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 5.3, 6.2

    Iron and sulfur-based biospheres and their biosignatures

    Year: 2007 / TEAM: CAL / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1, 4.1, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 7.2

    Iron Oxidation - Shaping the Past and Present Environments

    Year: 2007 / TEAM: MBL / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 4.1, 5.2, 5.3, 6.1, 7.2

    Laboratory Microbial Simulations: Astrobiological Signatures

    Year: 2008 / TEAM: PSU / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1, 4.1, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 7.1

    Laser fluorometry for remote detection of oxygenic phototrophs on Earth and, potentially, on Mars

    Year: 2007 / TEAM: IPTAI / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 3.3, 4.2, 5.1, 5.3

    Mars Forward Contamination Studies Utilizing a Mars Environmental Simulation Chamber

    Year: 2008 / TEAM: IPTAI / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1, 3.2, 3.3, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 6.1, 6.2, 7.1

    Mechanisms of Marine Microbial Community Structuring

    Year: 2008 / TEAM: UH / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 6.1

    Microbial Communities and Activities in the Deep Marine Subsurface

    Year: 2008 / TEAM: MBL / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 5.1, 5.3, 6.1, 6.2

    Microbial Communities in Subpermafrost saline fracture water at the Lupin Au Mine, Nunavut, Canada

    Year: 2008 / TEAM: IPTAI / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 7.1

    Microbial Diversity in the Deep Ocean

    Year: 2007 / TEAM: MBL / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 6.1

    Microbial diversity of a hypersaline microbial mat

    Year: 2008 / TEAM: CUB / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 3.2, 3.3, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 7.2

    Modeling Early Earth Environments

    Year: 2008 / TEAM: VPL-UW / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 1.1, 1.2, 2.1, 4.1, 4.2, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 6.1, 7.2

    Molecular and Isotopic Microbial Community Analysis of Deep Subsurface Sediments

    Year: 2008 / TEAM: MBL / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 6.1

    Molecular Signatures of Life on the Edge (DDF project)

    Year: 2008 / TEAM: PSU / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 7.1

    Molecular Survey of Microbial Diversity in Hypersaline Ecosystems

    Year: 2007 / TEAM: CUB / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 3.4, 4.1, 4.2, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 6.1, 6.2, 7.1

    Planetary Biology, Evolution, and Intelligence

    Year: 2007 / TEAM: SETI / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 1.1, 1.2, 2.1, 2.2, 3.1, 3.2, 4.1, 4.2, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 6.1, 6.2, 7.1, 7.2

    Planetary Habitability

    Year: 2008 / TEAM: VPL-UW / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 1.1, 1.2, 2.1, 2.2, 4.1, 5.3, 6.1, 7.2

    Planetary-Scale Transition from Abiotic to Biotic Nitrogen Cycle

    Year: 2008 / TEAM: SETI / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 1.1, 2.1, 3.2, 4.1, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 6.1

    Project 5. Life in Extreme Environments

    Year: 2007 / TEAM: CIW / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 3.1, 5.1, 5.3, 6.2

    Project 6. Molecular and Isotopic Biosignatures

    Year: 2007 / TEAM: CIW / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1, 3.1, 4.1, 4.2, 5.3, 6.1, 6.2, 7.1, 7.2

    Project 7. Astrobiotechnology

    Year: 2007 / TEAM: CIW / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1, 2.2, 3.1, 3.2, 4.2, 5.3, 6.2, 7.1

    Radiolytic oxidation of sulfide minerals as a source of sulfate and hydrogen to sustain microbial metabolism

    Year: 2008 / TEAM: IPTAI / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 1.1, 2.1, 3.3, 4.1, 5.1, 5.3, 6.2

    Rapid response to remotely detected seafloor eruptions

    Year: 2007 / TEAM: UH / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 4.1, 5.3, 6.1

    Retentostat Studies of Subsurface Sulfate Reducing Bacterium

    Year: 2007 / TEAM: IPTAI / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 6.1, 6.2, 7.1, 7.2

    Saline Lakes and Gypsum Dunes in the Rio Grande Rift System as Analogues for Sulfate Deposits on Mars

    Year: 2008 / TEAM: IPTAI / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1, 5.3, 7.1

    Search for Biomarker Gases on Mars

    Year: 2007 / TEAM: GSFC / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1, 5.3, 6.2, 7.1

    Sediment-buried basement deep biosphere

    Year: 2008 / TEAM: UH / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 1.1, 3.3, 4.1, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 6.1, 6.2

    Stromatolites in the Desert: Analogs to Other Worlds

    Year: 2008 / TEAM: VPL-UW / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 5.1, 5.2, 5.3

    Subseafloor basement (basalt) biosphere studies

    Year: 2007 / TEAM: UH / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 1.1, 3.3, 4.1, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 6.1, 6.2

    Sulfur biogeochemistry of the Early Earth

    Year: 2008 / TEAM: CUB / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 1.1, 1.2, 4.1, 4.2, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 6.1, 7.1, 7.2

    Survival capability of a cold-loving microbe in a Mars simulation chamber

    Year: 2007 / TEAM: IPTAI / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1, 2.2, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 7.1

    The High Lakes Project (HLP)

    Year: 2008 / TEAM: SETI / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 1.1, 2.1, 4.1, 4.3, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 6.1, 6.2, 7.1

    Understanding the Microbial Ecology of Geologically-based Chemolithoautotrophic Communities

    Year: 2007 / TEAM: CUB / ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 5.3

Change your results

Change the project list by adding or removing a year. Click a year to add, click the [x] to remove.

  • 2003
  • 2004
  • 2005
  • 2006
  • 2007 [x]
  • 2008 [x]

  • Change the project list by adding or removing a roadmap objective. Click an objective to add, click the [x] to remove.

  • 1.1 Models of formation and evolution of habitable planets
  • 1.2 Indirect and direct astronomical observations of extrasolar habitable planets
  • 2.1 Mars exploration
  • 2.2 Outer Solar System exploration
  • 3.1 Sources of prebiotic materials and catalysts
  • 3.2 Origins and evolution of functional biomolecules
  • 3.3 Origins of energy transduction
  • 3.4 Origins of cellularity and protobiological systems
  • 4.1 Earth's early biosphere
  • 4.2 Foundations of complex life
  • 5.1 Environment-dependent, molecular evolution in microorganisms
  • 5.2 Co-evolution of microbial communities
  • 5.3 [x]
  • 6.1 Environmental changes and the cycling of elements by the biota, communities, and ecosystems
  • 6.2 Adaptation and evolution of life beyond Earth
  • 7.1 Biosignatures to be sought in Solar System materials
  • 7.2 Biosignatures to be sought in nearby planetary systems

  • Change the project list by adding or removing a team. Click a team to add, click the [x] to remove.

  • Carnegie Institution of Washington
  • Indiana University, Bloomington
  • Marine Biological Laboratory
  • NASA Ames Research Center
  • NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
  • Pennsylvania State University
  • SETI Institute
  • University of California, Berkeley
  • University of Colorado, Boulder
  • University of Hawaii
  • VPL at University of Washington