Short Wave What Mount Kilimanjaro Has To Do With The Search For Alien Life
Mar 16, 2022
Morgan Cable, a research scientist at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, discusses her thrilling expeditions studying extreme environments on Earth. She connects these insights to upcoming NASA missions aimed at exploring icy moons Europa and Titan, where unique conditions may harbor extraterrestrial life. The conversation dives into the resilience of life in harsh habitats and highlights the importance of understanding extreme biosignatures. Morgan also shares inspiring advice for future scientists pursuing careers in space exploration.
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Kilimanjaro Research
- Morgan Cable camped atop Mount Kilimanjaro for research, studying ice for biosignatures.
- These are signs of life, like pollen or bacterial spores, that can even survive in space.
Extreme Life and Space
- Studying extreme life on Earth, like bacterial spores, helps scientists understand potential life on other planets.
- These hardy organisms could travel on spacecraft or meteors, hinting at how life might survive elsewhere.
Earth as a Model
- Extreme environments on Earth, like mountaintops, mimic conditions on other planets' moons, helping scientists study potential life.
- These places inform research about moons like Europa and Enceladus.