space research on, 23–25,
spontaneous generation of, 115–18,
water and, 168
See also extraterrestrial life
light
elements and, 49–52,
flames, 48–49,
interstellar extinction, 140–41, 246
invisible, 145
radiation and, 268
rainbow spectrum, 50
solar spectrum, 44, 51–55,
spectrum of, 49–51,
temperatures of, 144–45,
wavelengths of, 33, 145–46,
See also infrared astronomy
light fingerprints
discovery of, 50–51,
dust grains, 198
elements, 298
molecules, 186
stars, 246–47,
unidentified broad-absorption patterns, 190
See also spectroscopy
light-years, distances in, 17–18,
Limits of Organic Life in Planetary Systems, Committee on the, 288, 294
Linnaeus, Carl, 277, 284
lithic astronomy, 199, 215. See also astrogeology
lithium, 281
Los Alamos, NM, 196
Los Angeles, CA, 37–38,
love and life, 285, 296
Lovelock, James, 299
Low, Frank, 147
LUCA (last universal common ancestor), 12, 291
Lunar Receiving Laboratory, 201
Lyttleton, Ray, 34
MacAlpine Hills 88105 meteorite, 195
Machu Picchu, 137
magnesium, 185, 206
main sequence in stars, 96, 183
manganese, 143
Manhattan Project, 81–82, 125
Marcy, Geoff, 257
Mars,
ice on, 178
images of, 167
life on, 299
meteorites from, 195, 207–208,
missions to, 23–24,
Martian Chronicles, The (Bradbury), 267
Martins, Zita, 229
Marxism, 113
masers, 169
idea for, 174
MASER (microwave amplification by stimulated emission of radiation), 172
water, 175, 177
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), 169, 173
mass spectrometers, 80, 209, 211
mathematics, 142, 271
Matthews, Jaymie, 253–54,
Mauna Kea, HI, 249–51,
Mayer, Julius Robert, 77
Mayor, Michel, 241–44, 255–56, 258, 263, 274, 302
McDonnell Center for the Space Sciences, 197
McKay, Chris, 296
McKellar, Andrew, 166
“Mémoire sur les corpuscules organisés qui existent dans l’atmosphère” (Pasteur), 118
Memoirs of the Literary and Philosophical Society of Manchester (Dalton), 73
Mendeleev, Dmitri, 63, 75
Mercury, 232, 243, 261
Merrill, Paul W., 37, 59–65, 95, 104, 190, 304
Messier object 42 (nebula), 138
metals, 99
meteorites, 195–96, 200–12, 214
National Meteorite Collection, 202
organic molecules in, 226–31, 236–40,
origins of, 207–208,
meteoroids, 198
methane, 123, 126–27, 147, 185, 187, 191, 225, 299, 301
methanol, 222, 237–38,
metric measurements, 18
M42 (nebula), 138
Michelson, Albert, 40
microbes, 115, 118, 131–32,
microorganisms, 117–18,
microscopes, 197, 199
microwave amplification by stimulated emission of radiation (MASER), 172. See also masers
microwave molecular spectroscopy, 171–73,
microwaves, 145, 163–64,
Microwave Spectroscopy (Schawlow and Townes), 172
military rockets, telescopes on, 147
Milky Way
dark patches, 136–38, 140
Earth-like planets in, 307
electrical static, 163
hydrogen clouds, 165
search for planets in, 270
solar systems in, 275
Miller, Stanley, 124–29, 191, 223–24, 233, 288, 289
Miller, William, 56–57,
Millikan, Robert, 67
minerals
mineralogists, 286
oldest discovered, 213–14,
in stardust, 156–57,
Ming, Tang, 212
mini-Neptunes, 261–62, 275
Mira (star), 184
Mira variable stars, 61–62,
MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology), 169, 173
moissanite (mineral), 156
molecules
chiral structure of, 228
cold molecular clouds, 222–23,
cosmic
discovery of, 30, 166
diversity of, 186–87,
detection of
by microwave signals, 171–75,
by radio telescopes, 161–62,
evolution of, 121–24,
extragalactic, 22
organic, 131
radio frequencies of, 165
stellar molecular synthesis, 183
molybdenum (element 42), 64
Moon
craters on, 305
Earthshine on, 301
eclipse of, 129
ice on, 177–78,
Late Heavy Bombardment, 231–35,
meteorites from, 195, 207–208,
missions to, 23–24, 167–70,
molecules on, 133
protection of, 131–32,
rocks from, 201, 231
voyages to, 35
See also Apollo missions
“Moondust” (Lederberg), 133
Mount Lassen, 174
Mount Palomar, 41, 62
Mount Wilson Observatory
Adams, Walter, 67
Bowen, Ira, 174
history and significance of, 39–43,
Hoyle, Fred, 91–92,
living quarters, women in, 98
Merrill, Paul, 59–61, 95, 304
150-Foot Solar Tower, 37–40, 43
spectrograph, 166
Murchison meteorite, 226–30, 240
amino acids in, 238
photograph of, 217
nano-diamonds, stellar, 157, 212–13, 218, 239
nanoSIMS (nano Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometer), 216
NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration)
Ames Research Center, 195, 221, 223–24, 238, 271
Apollo Science and Technology Advisory Committee, 168–69,
Astrobiology Science Conference, 284–86,
creation of, 35, 132, 181
Great Observatories, 272
Hubble Space Telescope, 148, 260, 272, 300, 302
International Space Station, 272
Jet Propulsion Lab, 299
Johnson Space Center, 182, 285
Kepler Space Telescope, 262–63, 266–67, 271–76, 302, 307
life, working definition of, 290
Lincoln Lab, 173
Mariner Mars orbiter, 167
Office of Space Science, 23
Origins Program, 23–24, 272
Planetary Protection Program, 110, 132
search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI) program, 24
Shuttle Infrared Telescope Facility (SIRTF), 148
Space Shuttle, 272
Spitzer Space Telescope, 33, 146, 148–49, 151, 157, 260, 302
Stardust mission, 26, 195–96, 198
Terrestrial Planet Finder, 298, 302
See also Apollo missions
National Aeronautics and Space Act, 132
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). See NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration)
Nazi Germany, 88, 165–66, 187, 211, 247. See also World War II
nebulae
Bok globules, 151–53,
discovery of, 137–38,
gravitational collapse, 155
Helix Nebula, 185
Orion Nebula, 138, 175, 177, 206, 260, 305, 306
planetary nebulae, 185
solar, 205, 206
spiral, 138–39,
Neptune, 220, 257
mini-Neptunes, 261–62, 275
Neptune-sized exoplanets, 261
NERVA (Nuclear Engine for Rocket Vehicle Application), 181
Neugebauer, Gerry, 152
neutrons, 87–88,
discovery of, 90
neutron capture, 99, 101
New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, 196–97,
Newton, Isaac, 29, 49, 53, 71–72, 121
night-vision combat technology, 147
Nimitz, Chester, 169
nitrogen, 119–20, 293, 295
Nobel Prizes, 68, 81, 102–104, 125, 130, 132, 165, 169, 175
noble gases, 209
nuclear alchemy, 64
Nuclear Engine for Rocket Vehicle Application (NERVA), 181
nuclear fusion, 182
nuclear physics, 83, 87
nuclear reactions, 78–79, 82
nuclear research, 181–82,
nuclear weapons, 81–83, 125, 131
nucleobases, 189, 229–31, 238
nucleosynthesis in stars, 103
nucleotides, 229, 291, 296
O, B, A, F, G, K, and M system, 59, 278
observatories, 41–43,
Oh Be A Fine Girl/Guy, Kiss Me! system, 59, 278
Old Faithful, 242
olivine (mineral), 156
150-Foot Solar Tower, 37–40, 43
Oparin, Alexander Ivanovich, 112–15, 119, 120–27, 130
open-star clusters, 139–40,
Oppenheimer, Robert, 170
organic chemistry, 162, 183–85, 228. See also chemistry
organic molecules, 223, 233–35,
Orgueil carbonaceous chondrite, 219
“Origin, Age, and Composition of Meteorites” (Anders), 207
Origin of Life, The (Oparin), 112, 114–15, 119, 130
Origin of Species, On the (Darwin), 42, 49, 110, 113, 117, 278
origins, 12, 25, 29–30,
Origins and Evolution of Life, Committee on the, 23–24, 109–12, 132
Origins of Life Initiative, Harvard University, 284, 297
Origins Program, 23–24, 272
Orion (constellation), 155, 304
Orion Nebula, 138, 175, 177, 206, 260, 305, 306
orphan planets, 264
oxidative atmospheres, 123, 129
oxygen
in atmosphere, 299, 301
as element of life, 119–20, 178–79, 293–95,
molecular, 123
nucleosynthesis, 101
in water, 74
ozone, 301
Padilla, Steve, 37–40,
PAHs (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons), 187–88, 224, 230
paleogenetics, 287
paleontology, molecular, 288
Palomar, Mount, 41, 62
panspermia, 119
paradigm shifts, 33–34,
Pasteur, Louis, 29, 117–18,
Paz, Octavio, 306
Peiresc, Nicolas-Claude Fabri de, 138
Penzias, Arno, 29, 164–65,
Perceptron (computer), 269
periodic table of elements, 59, 63, 75
Perrier, Carlo, 63
Philosopher's Stone, 71, 86
philosophy, 45–46, 115
phosphorus, 293
photography, 57–59,
photometers, 269–70, 272
“Physical Basis of Life, On the” (Huxley), 119
physics, 49, 286, 293
research, 68
unified theory, 29
use of math, 142
See also astrophysics
Pickering, Edward C., 58
Pillars of Creation, 150
Pius XII (pope), 87
planetary chemistry, 296
planetary embryos, 220
planetary nebulae, 185
planetesimals, 203, 221
planets
in double-star systems, 264–65,
51 Peg b (51 Pegasi b), 243, 255, 261, 272
gap in knowledge about, 243–44,
living planets, 297–302,
orphan planets, 264
types of, 261
See also exoplanets
plasmas, 76, 268–69,
platinum, 101
Pluto, dwarf-planet status, 265
pollution, 189
polysaccharides, 296
potassium chloride, 187
Pouchet, Félix Archimède, 117–18,
prairies, North American, 135–36,
pre-solar stardust grains, 215–19, 239
primordial soup, 126–27, 130, 223–24, 289
prisms, 49–51, 144–45,
Profitable Disposal of Sewage, The (Crookes), 72
proplyds, 260. See also protoplanetary disks
proteins, 223, 226, 227, 229, 295, 296
protobiologists, 115
protocosmologists, 86
protons, 281
protoplanetary disks, 204, 221, 260, 263
Prout, William, 74–76,
Puerto Rico, 161
quantum atom, 90
quantum mechanics, 69, 86
quantum physics, 91, 125
quarks, 281
quartz, 143
Queloz, Didier, 243–44, 255–56,
“Quest for the Origin of the Elements, The” (Fowler), 102
radar, 91, 163–64, 170–71,
radial velocity method, 246–47,
radioactive alpha decay, 86
radioactive elements, 63
radioactivity, 78
radio astronomy, 22, 33, 160–67, 174, 177, 235
radio waves, 145–46, 163
radium (element), 78
rainbows, 50, 144–45,
Rank, David, 174–75,
Reber, Grote, 163
Recombination Era, 282
red giant stars
carbon production in, 143, 183–85, 237
circumstellar envelope, 185
diamonds formed in, 213
dust created in, 155, 157
energy from, 80
nucleosynthesis, 101
silicon carbide stardust grains, 218
spectroscopic fingerprints of, 239
water formed by, 178–79,
red shift, 61, 140, 246–47,
reducing atmospheres, 123, 129
regolith, 168, 170
Reilly, Edith, 151–52,
R Geminorum (star), 62
ribonucleic acid (RNA). See RNA (ribonucleic acid)
Rice University, 182
ring-shaped hydrocarbons, 188–89,
RNA (ribonucleic acid), 189, 229, 290–91,
Rockefeller, John D., Sr., 41
rocks, 84, 156, 197, 199–205, 208, 215, 221, 230–31,
Rosenblatt, Frank, 269–70, 272
r-process (rapid), 101–102,
Russell, Henry Norris, 91
Russian Revolution, 114, 131
Rutherford, Ernest, 78–79, 81, 90
Safronov, Viktor, 208
Sagan, Carl, 132, 159, 161, 269
cosmic delivery of organic material, 233
on extraterrestrial life, 31–32, 223–24,
life, definition of, 290
support for planet hunting, 252
Sagittarius B, 174–75,
Salpeter, Edwin, 93, 269
salt, 54, 120, 185, 187, 300
Sandford, Scott, 195–99, 221–24, 234, 238, 240
Sanford, Roscoe Frank, 138–39,
Saskatchewan, Canada, 135–36,
Sasselov, Dimitar, 284
Saturn, 176, 220, 257
Schawlow, Arthur, 172
Schmidt, Otto, 208
science fiction, 180, 243, 267, 287, 294
books, 89, 141
films, 23, 25, 161
scientific establishment, 33–35,
scientific methods, 46
scientific revolutions, 28
Sea of Tranquility, 167
search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI) program, 24, 161, 164, 271
sedimentary rocks, 203
seeing, 32–33, 38, 43, 144, 160
Segrè, Emilio, 63
SETI (search for extraterrestrial intelligence) program, 24, 161, 164, 271
Shapley, Harlow, 40
silicate dust, 143, 156–57,
silicon-based life, 294–95,
silicon carbide, 218, 239
silicon dioxide, 283
silver (element), 85, 101, 303, 304
SIRTF (Shuttle Infrared Telescope Facility), 148
Smithsonian Institution, 201
sodium, light fingerprint of, 53, 300
sodium chloride, 185, 187
solar observation, 37–44,
solar spectrum, 44, 51–55,
Solar System
birth of, 219–23,
changing perspectives on, 265
formation of, 206, 231–32,
as model, 257–58, 260–61,
origin of, 196, 208
solid phase of, 205
water, discovery of, 176–78,
solar systems
behaviors of, 263–64,
diversity of, 258–59,
in Milky Way, 275
search for, 243–44,
See also Extreme Solar Systems II conference (Jackson Hole, WY)
Solution of the Sewage Question, A (Crookes), 72
Sonora Desert, AZ, 159
Soviet Union
Biochemical Institute, 114
scientific research, 208
Soviet Academy of Sciences, 124, 126
Sputnik I (satellite), 34–35, 131, 181
space age, modern, 35–36, 131, 181
space and time, beginning of, 280–81,
Space Sciences Board, 132
Space Studies Board. See United States Space Studies Board
spectroscopy
Doppler spectroscopy, 246, 249, 257, 259
gases, identification of, 298
mysteries in, 190
spectral fingerprints of elements, 76
spectrograms, 57–59, 166
spectrography, 258
spectroscopes, 44, 50–51, 268
stellar, 55–63, 123, 245
See also light fingerprints
spiral nebulae, 138–39,
Spitzer, Lyman, 148, 151
Spitzer Space Telescope, 33, 146, 148–49, 151, 157, 260, 302
spontaneous generation, 114–18,
s-process (slow), 101
Sputnik I (satellite), 34–35, 131, 181
spy equipment, 147, 197, 268
Stalin, Joseph, 208
Standard Model of Cosmology, 29
stardust
defined, 25
diamonds in, 213
emergence of Earth from, 208
first created, 153–54,
grains, 215–20,
infrared images of, 150–51,
organic, 239
stardust geology, 214–16,
stardust science, 25–35,
See also cosmic dust
Stardust mission, 224–25,
The Stardust Revolution Page 38