Life in Space - Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence

This still is from a U.S. Navy jet's video of a UFO sighting.

UFO answers coming soon? US government to report on mysterious sightings

By Mike Wall published 19 May 21

We could soon start getting answers to some vexing UFO questions.

NASA envisions a potential future mission could bring a sample from Saturn's moon Titan, powering its return flight with hydrocarbons from the moon's surface methane lakes.

Scientists ponder how to get samples from Saturn's weird moon Titan

By Tereza Pultarova published 18 May 21

A concept of a sample-return mission to Saturn's moon Titan envisions using local lakes of hydrocarbons as a source of fuel to power the trip home.

Orpheus descending on a 2019 deployment.

NASA partners with deep-ocean explorers to develop tech for Europa mission

By Tereza Pultarova published 13 May 21

An autonomous submarine set to revolutionize deep-sea exploration will test technology for future space missions to moons with hidden oceans.

NASA's Perseverance Mars rover used its dual-camera Mastcam-Z imager to capture this image of "Santa Cruz," a hill within Jezero Crater, on April 29, 2021.

NASA's Perseverance rover on Mars has found some mysterious rocks (photos)

By Mike Wall published 13 May 21

For the past five weeks, Perseverance has been focused primarily on supporting and documenting the flights of NASA's Ingenuity helicopter. But the rover has been doing some science work, too.

The Library of the Great Silence will feature artifacts of transition, like this handaxe.

'Library of the Great Silence' invites E.T. to share long-term survival strategies

By Mike Wall published 29 April 21

Intelligent aliens will soon have a space here on Earth where they can share how they made it through their technological adolescence.

Artist's impression of a primitive ocean on Mars, which may have had more water than the Arctic Ocean on Earth. (Most of that water was later lost to space.)

Mystery solved? Heat-trapping clouds may explain ancient Mars' rivers and lakes

By Mike Wall published 28 April 21

Cloudy skies may have allowed water to flow on Mars long ago.

Artist's conception of a violent flare erupting from the star Proxima Centauri.

Proxima Centauri shoots out humongous flare, with big implications for alien life

By Harry Baker published 25 April 21

Scientists have detected the largest stellar flare ever recorded from Proxima Centauri. The finding changes what we know about stellar flares and the potential for alien life around red dwarfs.

A colored topographical map of the southern highlands Martian basins from the Brown University study. The raised ridges are colored dark yellow and the low-lying areas where water pooled are colored in white.

Strange crater suggests ancient Mars may have been frigid with occasional snowmelt

By Doris Elin Urrutia published 20 April 21

Mars' ancient history is interesting to scientists because if the arid planet was once warm and wet, it may have been habitable to life.

In this classic Apollo 14 image, taken just before the lunar module landed at Fra Mauro, Earth peeks over the edge of the moon.

Alien hunters should search for artifacts on the moon, study suggests

By Charles Q. Choi published 14 April 21

The famous equation used to search for alien civilizations has now inspired a new formula to hunt for alien artifacts within our solar system.

An image of Saturn's moon Enceladus taken by NASA's Cassini spacecraft.

Enceladus may have ocean currents like we see around Antarctica

By Elizabeth Howell published 1 April 21

The ocean of the water-spurting moon Enceladus might be more active than scientists realized.

Features called recurring slope lineae (RSL) are found on some Martian slopes in warmer months. Red arrows point out an RSL in this image taken by the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment camera system on NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.

Mars' dark streaks are probably caused by dry landslides

By Mike Wall published 30 March 21

A recent study found that these dark marks, known as recurring slope lineae, surged following the massive 2018 dust storm that killed NASA's Mars rover Opportunity.

A 2007 image from the APL-built STEREO B spacecraft of the moon crossing in front of the sun. A new conceptual study proposes to observe the Earth in a similar way, to learn if the transit method can determine a planet’s habitability.

How to spot aliens? Look at Earth, scientists propose.

By Mindy Weisberger published 25 March 21

Revisiting how Earth looks from space could offer scientists clues for finding alien life on distant worlds.

A portion of the panorama captured by the Mastcam-Z camera system aboard NASA's Perseverance Mars rover. The full panorama consists of 142 images taken on Feb. 21, 2021.

The Perseverance rover's 1st month on Mars has been super smooth, scientists say

By Mike Wall published 17 March 21

For the past month, the mission team has been checking out Perseverance's seven science instruments and its various subsystems. The rover has jumped through every hoop on cue.

Curious Kids: We have been trying to contact aliens – but do they want to contact us?

By Jacco van Loon published 14 March 21

This is a great question – and the truth is that we don’t know the answer.

Mars as seen from orbit by NASA’s Viking mission. The Red Planet's surface supported liquid water in the ancient past, but scientists still debate how warm and wet it was back then.

Ancient Mars' warm spells probably didn't last long

By Mike Wall published 9 March 21

Ancient Mars was warm and wet only intermittently, a new study suggests.

Artist’s illustration of the exoplanet Proxima b, the Earth-size world that orbits in the "habitable zone" of the red dwarf star Proxima Centauri. Proxima b is likely tidally locked, always showing the same face to its host star.

Can super-rotating oceans cool off extreme exoplanets?

By Paul Sutter published 8 March 21

New research suggests a way to move heat around "tidally locked" alien planets: ocean currents whipping around the worlds faster than they rotate.

This still from a White House video shows U.S. President Joe Biden watching NASA's broadcast of the successful Mars landing by the Perseverance rover on Feb. 18, 2021.

NASA's Perseverance rover landing on Mars was a giant leap for America, President Biden says

By Mike Wall published 5 March 21

The reverberations from the epic touchdown of NASA's Perseverance Mars rover will extend far beyond the science and spaceflight communities, President Biden said.

Another artist's concept showing NASA's Perseverance rover on the surface of Mars.

Perseverance rover: NASA's Mars car to seek signs of ancient life

By Nola Taylor Tillman, Mike Wall published 2 March 21

NASA's Perseverance rover isn't just exploring the Red Planet. The life-hunting robot will also help a little bit of Mars make it to Earth a decade or so from now, if all goes according to plan.

China's Tianwen-1 Mars rover is pictured at the "Mars yard," a simulated Red Planet testing ground at the China Academy of Space Technology in Beijing, China.

Here's what we know about planetary protection on China's Tianwen-1 Mars mission

By Meghan Bartels published 25 February 21

In anticipation of China's first Mars landing attempt, scientists are wondering whether the Tianwen-1 rover may carry Earthly contamination with it to the surface.

Perseverance rover snaps gorgeous HD panorama of Mars landing site

By Mike Wall published 24 February 21

Perseverance has captured a high-definition, 360-degree panorama of its surroundings on the floor of Mars' Jezero Crater, which harbored a lake and a river delta billions of years ago.

Search for Life

Latest