Exploring the potential for extraterrestrial life and the origins of
our own planet, this comprehensive introduction to astrobiology is
updated with the latest findings.
Informed by the discoveries and analyses of extrasolar planets and the
findings from recent robotic missions across the solar system,
scientists are rapidly replacing centuries of speculation about
potential extraterrestrial habitats with real knowledge about the
possibility of life outside our own biosphere--if it exists, and, if so,
where. Casting new light on the biggest questions there are--how did we
get here, and who else might be out there?--this third edition of Kevin
W. Plaxco and Michael Gross's widely acclaimed Astrobiology
incorporates a decade's worth of new developments in space to bring
readers the most comprehensive, up-to-date, and engaging introduction to
the field available.
Plaxco and Gross examine the factors that make our Universe habitable,
from the origin of chemical elements and the formation of the first
galaxies and stars to the birth and composition of the planets. They
describe the latest thinking about the origins of life, explain the
evolution of metabolism and the development of complex organisms. In
order to assess the limits for life elsewhere, they also explore life in
extreme habitats and reveal how it informs the search for potential
extraterrestrial habitats--ones that might support extraterrestrial
life. New and updated illustrations enhance the book throughout.
Sharing fascinating findings from the comet mission Dawn, the visit of
New Horizons to Pluto, and the work of the Deep Carbon Observatory,
which has revealed an incredible underground biosphere within our own
planet, Plaxco and Gross weave together cosmology, astrophysics,
geology, biochemistry, biophysics, and microbiology. From neutron star
mergers to the survival skills of tardigrades, this fascinating book is
an ideal primer for students or anyone curious about life and the
Universe.
