RAS Discussion Meeting: Is the Earth Special?

Is our world a typical product of planetary formation processes, or does it exhibit an un-‐ usual combination of properties that were necessary preconditions for the emergence of life? And what's the strongest influence: Gaia or Goldilocks? Does a complex biosphere self-‐support environmental stability or does this confuse cause and effect?
This interdisciplinary RAS Discussion Meeting is intended to shed light on this question from many different directions: Cosmology (How big is the Universe?), Geophysics (Is the Earth's magnetic field unusually strong?), Biogeochemistry (does the silicate weathering cycle guarantee climate stability?), Biology (what are the environmental limits on a com-‐ plex biosphere?), Early-‐life (what are the conditions necessary for life to emerge?) and Celestial Mechanics (how do volatiles get to terrestrial planets?). The topic is highly con-‐ troversial and will attract speakers and attendees from both sides of the argument.
For further details please see RAS Events website
No registration necessary - simply arrive at the Geological Society, Piccadilly, for a 10am start.
Please click to view the abstract book for this meeting.
Last Updated (Wednesday, 09 November 2011 10:59)
Is the Earth Rare? PUBLIC LECTURE
Is the Earth Rare?
Prof. James Kasting
(Penn State University)
5:30pm Thursday 8th December
Christopher Ingold LT, Chemistry dept., UCL
Public lecture, followed by wine reception and book signing
FREE to attend, but please register tickets at: www.eventbrite.com/event/2278312494
In their 2000 book, Rare Earth, Peter Ward and Don Brownlee argue that complex life (i.e., animal life) is rare in our galaxy for a variety of reasons, some of which are based on the idea that habitable planets are themselves rare. Possible reasons for this include: 1) Plate tectonics (possibly necessary to stabilize planetary climates) is rare; 2) large moons (possibly necessary to stabilize planetary obliquities) are rare; 3) magnetic fields (possibly necessary to retain atmospheres) are rare; 4) the Sun is anomalously metal-rich; 5) Jupiter-sized outer planets (possibly necessary to protect the Earth from frequent large impacts) are rare. In my talk, I will review these Rare Earth arguments and show that most, or all, of them are less troubling than Ward and Brownlee supposed. Despite this, perhaps there are other factors that could make habitable planets scarce. But this should not discourage us from building the types of large space telescopes required to actually answer this question.
Last Updated (Wednesday, 09 November 2011 10:44)
UK Centre for AstrobiologyPostdoctoral Research Fellow in Astrobiology/Microbiology of Extreme Environments
Working at the interface between microbiology, physics and planetary sciences (astrobiology), you will be a member of the UK Centre for Astrobiology at the University of Edinburgh. Your responsibilities will include work on anaerobic microbiology and studying microbe-mineral interactions in extreme terrestrial and simulated extraterrestrial conditions. You will play a major role in designing and building a new planetary simulation facility at Edinburgh and liaising with groups internationally to optimise its design and use it in your own research.
We encourage all applicants to apply online at www.jobs.ed.ac.uk http://www.jobs.ed.ac.uk . The application process is quick and easy to follow, and you will receive email confirmation of safe receipt of your application. The online system allows you to submit a CV.
Fixed Term: 2 years Last Updated (Monday, 26 September 2011 11:09) ASB symposium on Co-evolution of Life and PlanetsSupervisors: Dr. Victoria Pearson, Dr. Manish Patel, Prof.
Charles Cockell and Prof. Monica Grady
Planetary and Space Sciences Research institute (PSSRI), The Open University
For further project information, contact Dr Victoria Pearson (
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)
Other PhD opportunities in planetary and space science are also available for Autumn 2011 http://www.open.ac.uk/science/pssri/about-the-department/opportunities/phd-opportunities/projects.php
(click on image above for full-size flyer)
ASB symposium on Co-evolution of Life and Planets
24th November 2011, University of Cambridge
Please contact Sohan Jheeta (
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) for FREE registration
Last Updated (Monday, 05 September 2011 07:41) ASB conference papers now available in International Journal of Astrobiology
The fourth Astrobiology Society of Britain conference, ASB4, was hosted this year at Royal Holloway, University of London, over April 7th - 9th 2010. The conference was a huge success, attracting well over 50 delegates, both nationally and internationally, and demonstrated the incredibly broad range and diversity of current astrobiology research. The meeting also attracted a number of journalists and TV documentary producers and so will hopefully make an appreciable impact in presenting astrobiology within the public eye.The papers proceeding from this meeting have now been published in a special issue of the International Journal of Astrobiology. The reference for this special issue is International Journal of Astrobiology 9(4). A pdf of the abstract booklet, listing all oral and poster presentations, is also available for download here.
Last Updated (Friday, 05 November 2010 10:09) |




