ASTROBIOLOGY

For about as long as humans have looked up into the night sky, we’ve wondered if we’re alone in the universe. It’s a question that NASA scientists continue to pursue, most recently at the new Astrobiology Institute in California. I’m Jim Metzner, and this is the Pulse of the Planet, presented by the American Museum of Natural History.

“Astrobiology is the study of life in the universe. For NASA, it’s a way of using the technology of space exploration to answer fundamental questions about life. Where did we come from? Are we alone in the universe? What’s our future in space?”

David Morrison is Director of Space at NASA’s Ames Research Center.

“We have the technology today to begin to answer these fundamental questions. For instance, we are sending a series of spacecraft to Mars whose primary objective is to look for evidence of fossil life that may have existed on that planet in the past. We have another set of spacecraft that are going to be searching for Earth-like planets circling distant stars and we want to be able to find out if those planets are inhabited by any form of life. The space station is another important element. It will provide us an opportunity to study for the first time what happens to terrestrial life when we move it off the planet and subject it for long periods of time in space. At the same time we are preparing to to leave our own planet Earth and venture into space, and we ask ourselves: will we have a future in space? Can we adapt? Could terrestrial life, for instance, ultimately flourish on Mars?”

Pulse of the Planet is presented by the American Museum of Natural History. Additional funding for this series has been provided by the National Science Foundation. I’m Jim Metzner.

ASTROBIOLOGY

NASA scientists are trying to answer some of mankind's oldest questions.
Air Date:03/08/1999
Scientist:
Transcript:

For about as long as humans have looked up into the night sky, we've wondered if we're alone in the universe. It's a question that NASA scientists continue to pursue, most recently at the new Astrobiology Institute in California. I'm Jim Metzner, and this is the Pulse of the Planet, presented by the American Museum of Natural History.

"Astrobiology is the study of life in the universe. For NASA, it's a way of using the technology of space exploration to answer fundamental questions about life. Where did we come from? Are we alone in the universe? What's our future in space?"

David Morrison is Director of Space at NASA's Ames Research Center.

"We have the technology today to begin to answer these fundamental questions. For instance, we are sending a series of spacecraft to Mars whose primary objective is to look for evidence of fossil life that may have existed on that planet in the past. We have another set of spacecraft that are going to be searching for Earth-like planets circling distant stars and we want to be able to find out if those planets are inhabited by any form of life. The space station is another important element. It will provide us an opportunity to study for the first time what happens to terrestrial life when we move it off the planet and subject it for long periods of time in space. At the same time we are preparing to to leave our own planet Earth and venture into space, and we ask ourselves: will we have a future in space? Can we adapt? Could terrestrial life, for instance, ultimately flourish on Mars?"

Pulse of the Planet is presented by the American Museum of Natural History. Additional funding for this series has been provided by the National Science Foundation. I'm Jim Metzner.