Astrophysics & Particle Physics-APPC 2026

Astrobiology is an interdisciplinary study of the origin, evolution, distribution, and destiny of life in the universe. It draws on biology, chemistry, planetary science, and astronomy to unravel the Astrobiology is used with a broad variety of celestial objects ranging from Earth analogues to Mars, icy moons such as Europa and Enceladus, to exoplanets. For instance, finding water, organic compounds, and redox-active minerals guides habitability estimates. Space missions like Mars rovers, Europa Clipper, and JWST have been engineered to find biosignatures and examine the conditions under which life is possible.

Life detection also entails spectroscopic observation of exoplanet atmospheres, where water, oxygen, methane, and other molecule signatures could suggest habitability or even the existence of life. Complemented by climate and geophysical modeling, these measurements assist in targeting areas for future exploration.In conclusion, astrobiology and biosignatures seek to explain life's possibility in the universe and offer methods for discovering it. By analyzing chemical, atmospheric, and geological signals, researchers probe the origins of life, the conditions necessary for it to exist, and the potential for life elsewhere in the universe, connecting biology and astronomy to solve one of humanity's most fundamental questions.conditions necessary for life and the potential for life outside Earth. Of central importance is the search for biosignatures, measurable signs that indicate the presence of extant or past life.