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Life
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Planetary Exploration of Habitable Environments
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Planetary Exploration of Habitable Environments

A special issue of Life (ISSN 2075-1729). This special issue belongs to the section "Astrobiology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 October 2019) | Viewed by 21422

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Dirk Schulze-Makuch

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Astrobiology Group, Center for Astronomy and Astrophysics, Technical University Berlin, Berlin, Germany
Interests: planetary habitability; astrobiology; evolutionary biology; extreme environments; geobiology; space missions
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Alberto G. Fairén

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Centro de Astrobiología, CSIC-INTA, Madrid, Spain; Department of Astronomy, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
Interests: Mars evolution; Mars robotic exploration; hydrogeology; geochemistry; mineralogy; astrobiology

Special Issue Information

Planetary exploration is moving at a fast pace as we learn about the environmental conditions on various planetary bodies in our solar system and beyond. Habitable conditions, at some time during the history of the solar system, have been proposed to have existed on Mars, Venus, and a number of icy moons of the outer solar system, some of which may still exist today. For this update of the Life Special Issue, we particularly encourage submissions describing habitable conditions on planetary bodies, and of how life could have interacted with them, as well as, a description of the analogue environments on Earth from which we can learn about possible adaptations and life strategies on other planets and moons.

Prof. Dr. Dirk Schulze-Makuch
Prof. Alberto G. Fairén
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Life is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • planets
  • moons
  • habitability
  • analog environment
  • exploration
  • astrobiology

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

7 pages, 578 KiB  
Article
Indexing Exoplanets with Physical Conditions Potentially Suitable for Rock-Dependent Extremophiles
by Madhu Kashyap Jagadeesh, Sagarika Rao Valluri, Vani Kari, Katarzyna Kubska and Łukasz Kaczmarek
Life 2020, 10(2), 10; https://doi.org/10.3390/life10020010 - 26 Jan 2020
Viewed by 3896
Abstract
The search for different life forms elsewhere in the universe is a fascinating area of research in astrophysics and astrobiology. Currently, according to the NASA Exoplanet Archive database, 3876 exoplanets have been discovered. The Earth Similarity Index (ESI) is defined as the geometric [...] Read more.
The search for different life forms elsewhere in the universe is a fascinating area of research in astrophysics and astrobiology. Currently, according to the NASA Exoplanet Archive database, 3876 exoplanets have been discovered. The Earth Similarity Index (ESI) is defined as the geometric mean of radius, density, escape velocity, and surface temperature and ranges from 0 (dissimilar to Earth) to 1 (similar to Earth). The ESI was created to index exoplanets on the basis of their similarity to Earth. In this paper, we examined rocky exoplanets whose physical conditions are potentially suitable for the survival of rock-dependent extremophiles, such as the cyanobacteria Chroococcidiopsis and the lichen Acarospora. The Rock Similarity Index (RSI) is first introduced and then applied to 1659 rocky exoplanets. The RSI represents a measure for Earth-like planets on which physical conditions are potentially suitable for rocky extremophiles that can survive in Earth-like extreme habitats (i.e., hot deserts and cold, frozen lands). Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Planetary Exploration of Habitable Environments)
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22 pages, 1999 KiB  
Article
Ultradeep Microbial Communities at 4.4 km within Crystalline Bedrock: Implications for Habitability in a Planetary Context
by Lotta Purkamo, Riikka Kietäväinen, Maija Nuppunen-Puputti, Malin Bomberg and Claire Cousins
Life 2020, 10(1), 2; https://doi.org/10.3390/life10010002 - 04 Jan 2020
Cited by 31 | Viewed by 7058
Abstract
The deep bedrock surroundings are an analog for extraterrestrial habitats for life. In this study, we investigated microbial life within anoxic ultradeep boreholes in Precambrian bedrock, including the adaptation to environmental conditions and lifestyle of these organisms. Samples were collected from Pyhäsalmi mine [...] Read more.
The deep bedrock surroundings are an analog for extraterrestrial habitats for life. In this study, we investigated microbial life within anoxic ultradeep boreholes in Precambrian bedrock, including the adaptation to environmental conditions and lifestyle of these organisms. Samples were collected from Pyhäsalmi mine environment in central Finland and from geothermal drilling wells in Otaniemi, Espoo, in southern Finland. Microbial communities inhabiting the up to 4.4 km deep bedrock were characterized with phylogenetic marker gene (16S rRNA genes and fungal ITS region) amplicon and DNA and cDNA metagenomic sequencing. Functional marker genes (dsrB, mcrA, narG) were quantified with qPCR. Results showed that although crystalline bedrock provides very limited substrates for life, the microbial communities are diverse. Gammaproteobacterial phylotypes were most dominant in both studied sites. Alkanindiges -affiliating OTU was dominating in Pyhäsalmi fluids, while different depths of Otaniemi samples were dominated by Pseudomonas. One of the most common OTUs detected from Otaniemi could only be classified to phylum level, highlighting the uncharacterized nature of the deep biosphere in bedrock. Chemoheterotrophy, fermentation and nitrogen cycling are potentially significant metabolisms in these ultradeep environments. To conclude, this study provides information on microbial ecology of low biomass, carbon-depleted and energy-deprived deep subsurface environment. This information is useful in the prospect of finding life in other planetary bodies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Planetary Exploration of Habitable Environments)
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12 pages, 2597 KiB  
Article
Survivability of Anhydrobiotic Cyanobacteria in Salty Ice: Implications for the Habitability of Icy Worlds
by Barbara Cosciotti, Amedeo Balbi, Alessandra Ceccarelli, Claudia Fagliarone, Elisabetta Mattei, Sebastian Emanuel Lauro, Federico Di Paolo, Elena Pettinelli and Daniela Billi
Life 2019, 9(4), 86; https://doi.org/10.3390/life9040086 - 22 Nov 2019
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 4379
Abstract
Two anhydrobiotic strains of the cyanobacterium Chroococcidiopsis, namely CCMEE 029 and CCMEE 171, isolated from the Negev Desert in Israel and from the Dry Valleys in Antarctica, were exposed to salty-ice simulations. The aim of the experiment was to investigate the cyanobacterial [...] Read more.
Two anhydrobiotic strains of the cyanobacterium Chroococcidiopsis, namely CCMEE 029 and CCMEE 171, isolated from the Negev Desert in Israel and from the Dry Valleys in Antarctica, were exposed to salty-ice simulations. The aim of the experiment was to investigate the cyanobacterial capability to survive under sub-freezing temperatures in samples simulating the environment of icy worlds. The two strains were mixed with liquid solutions having sub-eutectic concentration of Na2SO4, MgSO4 and NaCl, then frozen down to different final temperatures (258 K, 233 K and 203 K) in various experimental runs. Both strains survived the exposure to 258 K in NaCl solution, probably as they migrated in the liquid veins between ice grain boundaries. However, they also survived at 258 K in Na2SO4 and MgSO4-salty-ice samples—that is, a temperature well below the eutectic temperature of the solutions, where liquid veins should not exist anymore. Moreover, both strains survived the exposure at 233 K in each salty-ice sample, with CCMEE 171 showing an enhanced survivability, whereas there were no survivors at 203 K. The survival limit at low temperature was further extended when both strains were exposed to 193 K as air-dried cells. The results suggest that vitrification might be a strategy for microbial life forms to survive in potentially habitable icy moons, for example in Europa’s icy crust. By entering a dried, frozen state, they could be transported from niches, which became non-habitable to new habitable ones, and possibly return to metabolic activity. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Planetary Exploration of Habitable Environments)
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18 pages, 4344 KiB  
Article
Characterizing Interstellar Medium, Planetary Surface and Deep Environments by Spectroscopic Techniques Using Unique Simulation Chambers at Centro de Astrobiologia (CAB)
by Eva Mateo-Marti, Olga Prieto-Ballesteros, Guillermo Muñoz Caro, Cristobal González-Díaz, Victoria Muñoz-Iglesias and Santos Gálvez-Martínez
Life 2019, 9(3), 72; https://doi.org/10.3390/life9030072 - 10 Sep 2019
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 5433
Abstract
At present, the study of diverse habitable environments of astrobiological interest has become a major challenge. Due to the obvious technical and economical limitations on in situ exploration, laboratory simulations are one of the most feasible research options to make advances both in [...] Read more.
At present, the study of diverse habitable environments of astrobiological interest has become a major challenge. Due to the obvious technical and economical limitations on in situ exploration, laboratory simulations are one of the most feasible research options to make advances both in several astrobiologically interesting environments and in developing a consistent description of the origin of life. With this objective in mind, we applied vacuum and high pressure technology to the design of versatile simulation chambers devoted to the simulation of the interstellar medium, planetary atmospheres conditions and high-pressure environments. These simulation facilities are especially appropriate for studying the physical, chemical and biological changes induced in a particular sample by in situ irradiation or physical parameters in a controlled environment. Furthermore, the implementation of several spectroscopies, such as infrared, Raman, ultraviolet, etc., to study solids, and mass spectrometry to monitor the gas phase, in our simulation chambers, provide specific tools for the in situ physico-chemical characterization of analogues of astrobiological interest. Simulation chamber facilities are a promising and potential tool for planetary exploration of habitable environments. A review of many wide-ranging applications in astrobiology are detailed herein to provide an understanding of the potential and flexibility of these unique experimental systems. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Planetary Exploration of Habitable Environments)
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