“Astrobiology, the Quest for the Conditions of Life”

In this lecture, Gerda Horneck, an astrobiologist and a veteran of space science, explores the fundamental principles that enable the emergence and evolution of life from inert matter, as well as its possible distribution throughout the cosmos. She presents the key factors that determine planetary habitability—such as liquid water, chemical conditions, and protection from radiation—and compares extreme environments on Earth with those found on bodies like Mars, Europa, or exoplanets. She also reflects on how orbital experiments and robotic missions help validate astrobiological theories and guide the search for life on other worlds.

This lecture, given in December 2013, is part of the astrophysics series ‘The Science of the Cosmos, the Science in the Cosmos’. This lecture series tackles the fundamental questions in contemporary astrophysics.The discovery of the earliest galaxies, the

In this lecture, Gerda Horneck, an astrobiologist and a veteran of space science, explores the fundamental principles that enable the emergence and evolution of life from inert matter, as well as its possible distribution throughout the cosmos. She presents the key factors that determine planetary habitability—such as liquid water, chemical conditions, and protection from radiation—and compares extreme environments on Earth with those found on bodies like Mars, Europa, or exoplanets. She also reflects on how orbital experiments and robotic missions help validate astrobiological theories and guide the search for life on other worlds.

This lecture, given in December 2013, is part of the astrophysics series ‘The Science of the Cosmos, the Science in the Cosmos’. This lecture series tackles the fundamental questions in contemporary astrophysics.The discovery of the earliest galaxies, the search for signs of life in the universe, the long-term stability of planetary systems and the study of starquakes are some of the issues examined in the third edition.