Planet Rotation Limits Habitability
August 15, 2014
Life can't exist on a planet that rotates too fast or slow. This is another Goldilocks problem for astrobiologists to consider.
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New Ways to Find E.T.
August 11, 2014
SETI researchers may not have to wait by the stellar radio dial for their imaginary friends to call in. They might eavesdrop on their pollution.
To Be Habitable, a Planet Needs Inhabitants
June 6, 2014
In a chicken-or-egg conundrum, astrobiologists are asking whether inhabitants are needed to make a planet habitable.
Mars Rivers Carved by Lava, Not Water
June 2, 2014
A controversial theory is being revived: lava carved Mars channels. This could discourage hopes to find life on the red planet.
Every Planet Surprises Secular Astronomers, III: Formation Theories
May 4, 2014
"Surprise" or "puzzling" are the most common words in news reports about bodies in the solar system. Here are recent examples that discuss the origin of planets.
Meteorites Shock Plant Material in Time Capsules
May 1, 2014
Bits of organic matter, leaves, and cells have been preserved in glass shocked by meteor impacts. Could they last millions of years?
Misleading Data: Scientists Fooled by Their Own Assumptions
April 29, 2014
Whatever the datum you think speaks verbatim, it ain't necessarily so.
Enceladus Ocean Means Dating Trouble, Not Life
April 5, 2014
News media are jumping over an announcement that Saturn's moon Enceladus may have a large body of water under its icy crust, but what does it mean?
Stellar Dust Disks Crumble
March 31, 2014
Observations show stellar dust disks fragmenting into smaller dust, not growing into planets.
Here Come the Martians Again
March 1, 2014
The "science" of astrobiology was launched when strange markings in a Martian meteorite were interpreted to be evidence of life. Here comes another one.
Imagining Worlds – No Evidence Required
January 11, 2014
Science fiction is fun, but science demands evidence, not imagination.
Evolutionary Tales Are Constructed Out of Imagination, Not Data
January 7, 2014
Fossil bits or genetic tidbits are often used as props for grand evolutionary tales, even when the data are problematic for Darwinian theory.
Cosmic Lottery: How Many Habitable Planets?
November 23, 2013
News media ran with a suggestion that one in five stars has a habitable planet, but they didn't read the fine print.
NASA Astrobiologists Draw Comics on the Job
November 6, 2013
A federally-funded NASA website about astrobiology has just launched an evolutionary comic strip. Is this an appropriate use of taxpayer funds?
Earth-Like Planet More Like a Lava Lamp
October 31, 2013
It might be an interesting place to visit on Star Trek, but you wouldn't want to live there. Theoretically, it shouldn't even exist.