‘Astrobiology, the Quest for the Conditions of Life in the Universe’

The over-riding objective of astrobiological research is to attain a better understanding of the principles leading to the emergence of life from inanimate matter, its evolution, and its distribution, thereby building the foundations for the construction and testing of meaningful axioms to support a theory of life. In the endeavor to quest for life on other celestial bodies of our solar system or beyond, clues can be gained from the history of our own biosphere and its strategies to adapt to changing and even “extreme” environmental conditions. Assuming water in liquid phase as universal prerequisite for habitability, the neighbor planet Mars, Jupiter’s moon Europa and the growing number of extrasolar planets are now favored targets of astrobiological research.