Astrobiology: Study of factors related to the origin and survival of life on Earth and elsewhere

摘要

Astrobiology is an interdisciplinary field of science focusing on the astronomical, physical, geological, chemical, and biological process that are related to the origin of life, and to the survival of life in various environments. These processes include e.g. the evolution of the universe, stars and planetary systems, interstellar chemistry, planet formation and conditions on the early Earth, prebiotic chemistry, and molecular and biological evolution. A fairly recent addition to these studies is the search of potentially habitable extra-solar planets and planetary systems, as well as search for biosigna-tures, either in our own solar system or in extra-solar planets.