ABSTRACT

Choice Recommended Title, August 2019

Read an exclusive interview with Professor Vera Kolb here.

Astrobiology is the study of the origin, evolution, distribution, and future of life on Earth. This exciting and significant field of research also investigates the potential existence and search for extra-terrestrial life in the Solar System and beyond.

This is the first handbook in this burgeoning and interdisciplinary field. Edited by Vera Kolb, a highly respected astrobiologist, this comprehensive resource captures the history and current state of the field. Rich in information and easy to use, it assumes basic knowledge and provides answers to questions from practitioners and specialists in the field, as well as providing key references for further study.

Features:

  • Fills an important gap in the market, providing a comprehensive overview of the field
  • Edited by an authority in the subject, with chapters written by experts in the many diverse areas that comprise astrobiology
  • Contains in-depth and broad coverage of an exciting field that will only grow in importance in the decades ahead

    • section Section I|1 pages

    Astrobiology

    chapter 1.1|11 pages

    Astrobiology

    Definition, Scope, and a Brief Overview
    ByVera M. Kolb

    chapter 1.2|11 pages

    Astrobiology Goals

    NASA Strategy and European Roadmap
    ByDavid J. Des Marais

    chapter 1.3|17 pages

    Online, Classroom and Wilderness Teaching Environments

    Reaching Astrobiology Learners of All Ages Around the World
    ByBruce W. Fouke, Kyle W. Fouke, Tom Murphy, Colleen N. Cook, Bruce F. Michelson, Joseph L. Cross, Lizanne DeStefano, Glenn A. Fried, Killivalavan Solai, Jacalyn Wittmer Malinowsky, Susan B. Kelly, Erin Louer, Courtney C. Fenlon, Nicholas P. Vasi, Adrienne M. Gulley, Mayandi Sivaguru

    chapter 1.4|4 pages

    Astrobiology as a Medium of Science Education

    BySun Kwok

    chapter 1.5|5 pages

    Astrobiology-as-Origins-Story

    Education and Inspiration across Cultures
    ByDaniella Scalice

    section Section II|1 pages

    Definition and Nature of Life

    chapter 2.1|8 pages

    Defining Life Multiple Perspectives

    ByVera M. Kolb

    chapter 2.3|15 pages

    Synthetic Cells and Minimal Life

    ByDaniel G. Gibson, Clyde A. Hutchison, Hamilton O. Smith, J. Craig Venter

    chapter 2.4|15 pages

    Communication as the Main Characteristic of Life

    ByGuenther Witzany

    section Section III|1 pages

    Origin of Life

    chapter 3.1|16 pages

    Philosophical Aspects of the Origin-of-Life Problem

    Neither by Chance Nor by Design
    ByIris Fry

    chapter 3.2|12 pages

    Charles Darwin and the Plurality of Worlds

    Are We Alone?
    ByMichael Ruse

    chapter 3.3|10 pages

    An Early History from Buffon to Oparin

    ByStéphane Tirard

    section Section IV|1 pages

    Chemical Origins of Life

    chapter 4.1|17 pages

    Interstellar Molecules and Their Prebiotic Potential

    ByLucy M. Ziurys

    chapter 4.4|11 pages

    Ancient Life and Plate Tectonics

    ByClark M. Johnson, Martin J. Van Kranendonk

    chapter 4.5|9 pages

    Atmosphere on Early Earth and Its Evolution as It Impacted Life

    ByJames F. Kasting

    section Section V|1 pages

    Chemical Origin of Life

    chapter 5.1|15 pages

    Prebiotic Chemistry That Led to Life

    ByJuli Peretó

    chapter 5.3|31 pages

    The Hydrothermal Impact Crater Lakes

    The Crucibles of Life’s Origin
    BySankar Chatterjee

    chapter 5.4|33 pages

    Prebiotic Chemistry in Hydrothermal Vent Systems

    ByMaría Colín-García, Saúl Villafañe-Barajas, Antoni Camprubí, Fernando Ortega-Gutiérrez, Vanessa Colás, Alicia Negrón-Mendoza

    chapter 5.6|14 pages

    The Origin and Amplification of Chirality Leading to Biological Homochirality

    ByKenso Soai, Arimasa Matsumoto, Tsuneomi Kawasaki

    chapter 5.7|5 pages

    Phosphorus in Prebiotic Chemistry—An Update and a Note on Plausibility

    ByAlan W. Schwartz

    chapter 5.8|9 pages

    Phosphorylation on the Early Earth

    The Role of Phosphorus in Biochemistry and Its Bioavailability
    ByCarolyn Lang, Jennifer Lago, Matthew A. Pasek

    chapter 5.9|5 pages

    Silicon and Life

    ByJoseph B. Lambert

    section Section VI|1 pages

    RNA and RNA World: Complexity of Life’s Origins

    chapter 6.1|16 pages

    Transitions

    RNA and Ribozymes in the Development of Life
    ByEric J. Hayden, Niles Lehman, Peter J. Unrau

    chapter 6.2|13 pages

    Three Ways to Make an RNA Sequence

    Steps from Chemistry to the RNA World
    ByPaul G. Higgs

    chapter 6.3|12 pages

    Coevolution of RNA and Peptides

    ByPeter Strazewski

    chapter 6.4|15 pages

    Role of Cations in RNA Folding and Function

    ByJessica C. Bowman, Anton S. Petrov, Loren Dean Williams

    chapter 6.5|26 pages

    The Origin of Life as an Evolutionary Process

    Representative Case Studies
    ByIris Fry

    chapter 6.6|18 pages

    The Complexity of Life’s Origins

    A Physicochemical View
    ByJan J. Spitzer

    section Section VII|1 pages

    Origin of Life

    chapter 7.1|8 pages

    Oparin’s Coacervates

    ByVera M. Kolb

    chapter 7.2|27 pages

    Protocell Emergence and Evolution

    ByPunam Dalai, Nita Sahai

    section Section VIII|1 pages

    Origin of Life and Its Diversification. Universal Tree of Life. Early Primitive Life on Earth. Fossils of Ancient Microorganisms. Biomarkers and Detection of Life

    chapter 8.2|7 pages

    Horizontal Gene Transfer in Microbial Evolution

    ByJohann Peter Gogarten, R. Thane Papke

    chapter 8.3|20 pages

    Viruses in the Origin of Life and Its Subsequent Diversification

    ByLuis P. Villarreal, Frank Ryan

    chapter 8.4|12 pages

    Carl R. Woese and the Journey toward a Universal Tree of Life

    ByBruce W. Fouke, Killivalavan Solai, Shelby L. Jones, Elizabeth M. Smith, Kyle W. Fouke, Kaitlyn E. Fouke, Claudia C. Lutz, Mayandi Sivaguru, Glenn A. Fried

    chapter 8.5|30 pages

    Fossils of Ancient Microorganisms

    ByKenichiro Sugitani

    chapter 8.6|11 pages

    Biomarkers and Their Raman Spectral Signatures

    An Analytical Challenge in Astrobiology
    ByHowell G.M. Edwards

    section Section IX|1 pages

    Life under Extreme Conditions—Microbes in Space

    chapter 9.1|26 pages

    Extremophiles and Their Natural Niches on Earth

    ByAharon Oren

    chapter 9.2|16 pages

    Microbes in Space

    ByKasthuri Venkateswaran

    chapter 9.3|6 pages

    Virus Evolution and Ecology

    Role of Viruses in Adaptation of Life to Extreme Environments
    ByMarilyn J. Roossinck

    section Section X|1 pages

    Habitability

    chapter 10.1|14 pages

    The Evolution of Habitability

    Characteristics of Habitable Planets
    ByCharles H. Lineweaver, Aditya Chopra, Sarah R. N. McIntyre

    section Section XI|1 pages

    Intelligent Life in Space

    chapter 11.1|16 pages

    Mind in Universe

    On the Origin, Evolution, and Distribution of Intelligent Life in Space
    ByDavid Dunér

    chapter 11.2|10 pages

    Where Are They? Implications of the Drake Equation and the Fermi Paradox

    ByNikos Prantzos

    chapter 11.3|13 pages

    SETI

    Its Goals and Accomplishments
    ByEric J. Korpela

    chapter 11.4|16 pages

    Humanistic Implications of Discovering Life Beyond Earth

    BySteven J. Dick

    section Section XII|1 pages

    Exoplanets, Exploration of Solar System, the Search for Extraterrestrial Life in Our Solar System, and Planetary Protection

    chapter 12.1|15 pages

    Exoplanets

    Methods for Their Detection and Their Habitability Potential
    ByKen Rice

    chapter 12.2|11 pages

    Solar System Exploration

    Small Bodies and Their Chemical and Physical Conditions
    ByHikaru Yabuta

    chapter 12.3|13 pages

    Solar System Exploration

    Icy Moons and Their Habitability
    BySteven D. Vance

    chapter 12.4|17 pages

    Searching for Extraterrestrial Life in Our Solar System

    ByBenton C. Clark

    chapter 12.5|16 pages

    Planetary Protection

    ByCatharine A. Conley

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