Astrobiology

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Astrobiology Page 15

by David C. Catling


  Schneider, Eric 8

  Schopf, Bill 42

  Schrödinger, Erwin 7, 8

  Second Law of Thermodynamics 7

  Secret Service 1

  sedimentary rocks 39–41, 50

  SETI (search for extraterrestrial intelligence) 120–4

  sexual reproduction early 54

  of eukaryotes 69–70

  Shapley, Harlow 115

  silicon based life 10–11

  Simpson, George Gaylord 5

  size of Mars 96

  Snowball Earth hypothesis 55–8

  social animals 123

  soil on Mars 96–7

  solar flux 85, 87

  Solar System 15

  age 25–6

  formation 22–5

  planetary orbits 30–1

  possible abodes of life 83–109, 128–9

  South Africa, microfossils 42

  species 75–6

  spectra of exoplanets 119

  spectral class 21

  SPONCH elements 12

  stable medium for biochemical processes 11

  stars, lifecycle 18–21

  Strelley Pool Formation, Australia 42

  stromatolites 40–1, 50

  Struve, Otto 5

  subduction 47

  subsurface biosphere 64

  sulphates on Mars 94

  sulphur 51–2

  sulphur dioxide on Mars 95

  Sun 14–15, 44–5

  elements in 17–18

  lifecycle 18–19, 21

  Super-Earths 110

  supernovae 19–20, 21, 23

  surface stability 65

  symmetry see chirality

  synchronous rotation 116–17

  T

  taxonomic levels 66

  technosignatures 120–4

  telescopes, space-based 113–14

  Thales 3

  Theia, impact with Earth 26

  Theory of General Relativity 113

  thermodynamics 6–8

  thermophiles 29–30, 79–81

  Thermus aquaticus 80

  tidal locking 116–17

  Tikov, Gavriil 5

  tillites 56

  tilt 127

  of Mars 95

  Titan (moon of Saturn) 82, 103–6, 129

  transcription 73

  transit method 112–13, 119

  transit timing variations 114

  Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) 113

  transmitting civilizations 120–4

  tree of life 76, 77

  Triton (moon of Neptune) 106–8

  Tumbiana Formation, Australia 50

  U

  universe

  expansion 16–17

  size 14–16

  uranium isotopes, age 25

  Uranus

  formation 24

  orbits 30

  Urey, Harold 32–3

  V

  valley networks on Mars 91–2

  Venus 84–8

  Viking landers 9, 89, 96–7

  Virgo supercluster 15

  viruses 70

  volcanoes 33, 57

  on Io 100

  cause of mass extinction 61

  Voyager 1 spacecraft 118

  W

  Ward, Peter 125

  water, liquid 10, 11–12, 65, 82–6, 89, 90–6, 99–103, 106, 115–16, 119

  Waterbelt Earth 57–8

  Watson, James 72

  weird life 82, 106

  Whewell, William 4, 115

  white dwarfs 19

  wobbles in stellar orbits 111

  Woese, Carl 76–7

  Z

  zircons 29

  Zuckerkandl, Emile 78

  SOCIAL MEDIA Very Short Introduction

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  GALAXIES

  A Very Short Introduction

  John Gribbin

  Galaxies are the building blocks of the Universe: standing like islands in space, each is made up of many hundreds of millions of stars in which the chemical elements are made, around which planets form, and where on at least one of those planets intelligent life has emerged. In this Very Short Introduction, renowned science writer John Gribbin describes the extraordinary things that astronomers are learning about galaxies, and explains how this can shed light on the origins and structure of the Universe.

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  PLANETS

  A Very Short Introduction

  David A. Rothery

  This Very Short Introduction looks deep into space and describes the worlds that make up our Solar System: terrestrial planets, giant planets, dwarf planets and various other objects such as satellites (moons), asteroids and Trans-Neptunian objects. It considers how our knowledge has advanced over the centuries, and how it has expanded at a growing rate in recent years. David A. Rothery gives an overview of the origin, nature, and evolution of our Solar System, including the controversial issues of what qualifies as a planet, and what conditions are required for a planetary body to be habitable by life. He looks at rocky planets and the Moon, giant planets and their satellites, and how the surfaces have been sculpted by geology, weather, and impacts.

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  STARS

  A VERY SHORT INTRODUCTION

  Andrew King

  Every atom of our bodies has been part of a star. Our very own star, the Sun, is crucial to the development and sustainability of life on Earth. This Very Short Introduction presents a modern, authoritative examination of how stars live, producing all the chemical elements beyond helium, and how they die, sometimes spectacularly, to end as remnants such as black holes.

  Andrew King shows how understanding the stars is key to understanding the galaxies they inhabit, and thus the history of our entire Universe, as well as the existence of planets like our own. King presents a fascinating exploration of the science of stars, from the mechanisms that allow stars to form and the processes that allow them to shine, as well as the results of their inevitable death.

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