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Carl Sagan with a model of the Viking Lander in Death Valley California. Viking 1 and 2 were the first spacecraft to search for present day life on Mars.

Indeed, so far these are the only spacecraft to ever search for life outside of Earth. Curiosity doesn't have any direct life detection instruments on board, and its priority is to search for habitability, rather than life itself.

Featured articles

Astrobiology:

• Astrobiology
• Abiogenesis - about the natural process of how life arises from non living matter
• Panspermia - transfer of life between planets on meteorites.
• Terrestrial analogue sites
• Murchison meteorite

Life on Mars:

• Possible present day habitats for life on Mars
• Life on Mars
• Present day Mars habitability analogue environments on Earth
• Viking program
• Allan Hills 84001 - the meteorite with tiny structures resembling cells

Life elsewhere

• Hypothetical types of biochemistry
• Life on Titan
• Life on Venus

Planetary protection:

• Planetary protection
• Interplanetary contamination
• Planetary protection for a Mars sample return

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Astrobiology

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About this site

This encyclopedia is based on astrobiology articles imported from Wikipedia. You are welcome to join in and help edit it. We welcome those knowledgeable in astrobiology especially, and your expertise and knowledge will be respected here. The aim here is to have a small friendly wiki, where we work together, and know each other. Do introduce yourself, here New editors

For the reason for setting up a new encyclopedia for this content, instead of fixing it in Wikipedia itself, see background to this encyclopedia.

My other wikis based on Wikipedia topic areas

• Microtonal
• Encyclopedia of Buddhism - set up by Dorje108 with me as co-admin.
• Doomsday Debunked