NASA Ames Academy 2007
Summary of Week Seven Speaker : Dr. Carl Pilcher

Dr. Carl Pilcher, Director of the NASA Astrobiology Institute (NAI), joined the NASA Ames Academy on August 6th to give an evening lecture on his field of study. His seminar provided a basic review of astrobiology, as well as an overview of the NAI.

Dr. Pilcher began by characterizing several extreme forms of life on Earth, and then went on to discuss the resulting implications in the search for life in the solar system. Various bacteria on Earth, termed "Extremophiles," have demonstrated their ability to successfully adapt to extreme environments originally believed to be lifeless. A specific bacteria, for instance, has been discovered living two miles underground. Completely isolated from the Sun, the bacteria obtain energy solely from the decay of radioactive rocks. Their existence demonstrates that life can exist practically anywhere with the presence of water, a source of energy, and common chemical compounds. As a result, the interest of the astrobiology community has been drawn to corresponding environments within the solar system, most notably Europa and its ice-covered ocean. Given the presence of water, the energy of subsurface geothermal activity could provide the needed fuel to support a variety of hardy life forms. Only time will tell.

Dr. Pilcher then provided a brief overview of the NASA Astrobiology Institute. The NAI is a "virtual" distributed institute, drawing from the efforts of 16 competitively selected teams comprised of over 700 members and 150 participating organizations. The proclaimed mission of the NAI is to facilitate the collaborative, multidisciplinary research efforts within the field of astrobiology, while also supporting related education and public outreach programs. This past year, the NAI assisted in the publication of over 650 research papers, and it continues to provide scientific and technical leadership on astrobiology investigations for current and future space missions. More information on the NAI or how to get involved can be found at their website: nai.arc.nasa.gov