Category: Uncategorized

Save the Date – ESA–NASA Omics Data Sharing Seminar

Join ESA and NASA on 11 March 2026 (16:00-18:00 CET) for a seminar on how ESA omics data are shared, curated and accessed through NASA’s Open Science Data Repository (OSDR). The session will present ESA Exploration Science activities, data access via the Human and Robotic Exploration Data Archive (HREDA), and opportunities to collaborate through OSDR Analysis Working Groups.

The seminar will have the following topics:

Welcome and introduction to ESA Exploration Science

Exploring data through Human and Robotic ExplorationData Archive (HREDA)

NASA’s Biological and Physical Sciences (BPS) researching space exploration

Intro into NASA Open Science Data Repository (OSDR)

Processing and Curation of ESA Data within NASA OSDR

Opportunities with OSDR-Analysis Working Groups

To register, please contact: Exploration-Science@esa.int

“Planetary Protection for sustainable space exploration” by The Royal Society

Royal Society Publishing has recently published an OPEN ACCESS theme issue of Philosophical Transactions A: Planetary Protection for sustainable space exploration compiled and edited by Karen Olsson-Francis, Athena Coustenis, Peter Doran, Petra Rettberg, Niklas Hedman and Jean-Claude Worms and the articles are FREE to access at www.bit.ly/TransA2314

About this issue

Planetary protection has recently gained increased attention from the broader scientific community, primarily driven by the rise of new spacefaring nations and the expanding role of private and commercial entities in space exploration. In response to these evolving dynamics, the COSPAR Planetary Protection Policy is being refined to accommodate these more complex and ambitious missions. This theme issue highlights the need for a transparent approach for planetary protection, where international collaboration is actively pursued, including the sharing of best practices and fostering collaboration among stakeholders to help ensure that space exploration benefits future generations.
The issue is based on the contributions presented at the Inaugural International COSPAR (Committee on Space Research) Planetary Protection Week held in London on April 2024 and at other COSPAR Planetary Protection Meetings.

List of papers

Planetary protection for safe and sustainable space exploration
Karen Olsson-Francis et al.

The COSPAR panel on planetary protection and the COSPAR policy on planetary protection: an overview of governance and activities
Niklas Hedman et al.

Testing the hypothesis, ‘planetary protection is expensive’ from the ESA perspective
Silvio Sinibaldi & Albert Haldemann

Proposed updates to the COSPAR planetary protection policy for missions to icy worlds
Peter Doran et al.

Habitability and exchange processes on the Jovian moons: implications for planetary protection measures
Gabriel Tobie et al.

Survival limits of psychrotolerant microorganisms with relevance for planetary protection of the icy moons
Tommaso Zaccaria, Kristina Beblo-Vranesevic, Marien I de Jonge, Mihai G Netea & Petra Rettberg

Planetary protection considerations for Dragonfly at Titan
Ralph D Lorenz, Shannon MacKenzie, Mihaela Ballarotto, Kenneth Hibbard & Elizabeth P Turtle

Isolator/glovebox technical challenges for the curation of samples returned from Mars
John MC Holt et al.

An ensemble binning approach to identify functional diversity in cleanroom environments
Michael C Macey, Alexander Mahnert, Ben P Stephens, Ezgi Kucukkilic-Stephens & Karen Olsson-Francis

Co-enrichment of Ce and organics in microbe-like structures at the deep-sea ferromanganese crust surface
Ayaka Tokumaru et al.

DEI survey for OoLEN

Our partners at OoLEN (Origin of Life Early-Career Network) are conducting a survey about diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in the field of origin of life research. Inclusion and Community are two of OoLEN’s key pillars, and as part of this, they are gathering information on the current DEI climate in the OoL field for early-career researchers (ECR).

Link to the survey: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdMkmpiJxzcRDR_LcOEOgtvcFjN__pdmKC3ppFjkFxPPTlBWA/viewform

The survey is fully anonymous!

Thank you!

DEADLINE TOMORROW – International Geobiology Course 2026: Call for applicants! (doctoral students)

Join the International Geobiology Course (IGC), hosted by Penn State University

What: 5 weeks of immersive training in geobiology

Where: 2 weeks in Italy and 3 weeks in the USA, hosted at Penn State University

When: 6 June – 10 July 2026.

Eligibility is restricted to doctoral students in the geological or biological sciences. Participants must have valid passports. The course is taught in English.

Applications and details about international travel requirements are on the course website.

Course description: Fieldwork takes place in the Apennine and Sibillini Mountains, and at sulfidic springs, rivers, and cave systems in central Italy. Students will explore Fayetteville Green Lake, a meromictic system in upstate New York. The course includes expert lectures, laboratory and computer-based research.
Students are responsible for transportation to Italy and home from Penn State. Group travel from Italy to Penn State is provided. Housing and meals are provided, both in Italy and the US.

Questions: email us at geobio@psu.edu

Deadline for applications: February 2nd 2026

More information on the website

Apply here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdeFaxcCa0DeKkK_DkWx-s0veCOeaIxUwdRTaYsPYwCpiYeKA/viewform

LAST MINUTE INVITATION: Share your memes! TODAY!

The Massive Exoplanet MEME Exhibition (MEME) would like to invite you to today’s (30th January 2026) opening of their online exhibition hall!

The MEME focuses on communicating topics such as astrophysics, exoplanets, and research in general in a way that is both informative and a lot of fun by using memes. Check out their website. There you will find not only the memes shared by others but also today’s livestream:

16:45 Door opens

17:00 Welcome speech

17:15 Invited talk by Adam Dipert

17:30 Invited talk by Anja C. Andersen

17:45 Explore exhibition and vote

18:30 Closing remarks

All times are in CET (GMT+1)

See you there!

The exhibition hall stays open from January 30th to February 4th

Early Career Network of the UK Royal Astronomical Society

The Early Career Network (ECN) of the UK Royal Astronomical Society would like to welcome expressions of interest from Early Career Fellows to join their Committee.

The ECN Steering Group is a Committee dedicated to building a supportive and welcoming community for early career researchers, supporting them in their career progression, and helping them to build relevant skills such as networking, conducting research and writing funding applications.

The Committee is responsible for, amongst other things, organising the RAS early career events, connecting early career researchers with other Fellows who can support them and act as a liaison between the early career community and the RAS senior Fellows, staff and Council. The Committee expects to meet regularly (approximately once a month), and the meetings are typically hybrid or fully virtual.

If you are interested in joining, please send a short expression of interest to ecn@ras.ac.uk outlining your interest in joining and any experience relevant for a role on the Committee. Looking forward to your comments.

Travel Award for UK and Ireland based Early-career researchers

The Europlanet Ireland & UK Hub is pleased to open a travel award call for Early Career Researchers (ECRs) to attend a conference, meeting, or other event pertinent to their planetary science research in 2025. Please submit applications here: https://www.europlanet.org/ireland-uk-hub-ecr-funding-scheme-2025/

Please consider the following when applying:

Applicants must:

  • be affiliated with a UK or Ireland institution.
  • be individual members of Europlanet or be based at an institution with an organisational Europlanet membership. Proof of Europlanet membership must be included in the application.
  • assess applications based on need, while being mindful of meeting timelines.
  • be ECRs, which Europlanet defines as anyone whose last degree was obtained no more than 7 years ago (not counting parental leave, serious illness, and similar career breaks).
  • submit no more than one application each.
  • name in their application the specific conference, meeting, or relevant event taking place in the UK or Ireland in 2025 with publicly available dates and other information.
  • submit their application at least one week before the first day of the meeting they plan to attend.
  • ensure they claim their expenses by 31st December 2025.

The Ireland & UK Hub will:

  • make individual awards of up to €250 to cover registration, travel, or accommodation costs. The total value of the fund is €1,000.
  • inform successful applicants in a timely manner by email and provide instructions on how to claim expenses.
  • act as liaison between successful applicants and Europlanet to reimburse expenses after the event has taken place.

Post-doc position: Modelling Titan’s atmosphere (University of Amsterdam)

Applications are invited for a postdoctoral (PD) position at the Anton Pannekoek Institute for Astronomy (API) at the University of Amsterdam Netherlands (UvA) to work with assistant professor Alessandra Candian on modelling hydrocarbon evolution on Titan’s atmosphere.

Deadline for applications:
February 2nd, 2025

Application and more information here

Opportunity at the International Space Science Institute (ISSI) in Bern (Switzerland) and ISSI-BJ in Beijing (China)

The International Space Science Institute (ISSI) in Bern (Switzerland) and ISSI-BJ in Beijing (China) invite proposals for establishing International Teams to conduct, at their respective meeting facilities, research in the Space Sciences. To be eligible, research projects must involve the interdisciplinary analysis and evaluation of space mission data. They may also draw on complementary ground-based data and/or theoretical modelling where this adds scientific value. For the purpose of this call, Space Sciences include Astrobiology, Astrophysics and Cosmology, Earth Observation, Fundamental Physics in Space, Magnetospheric and Space Plasma Physics, Planetary Sciences, Solar and Heliospheric Physics, and Solar-Terrestrial Sciences.

Deadline for proposals:
March 13, 2025

The Call for International Team proposals is available on the ISSI website

Opportunities with ESA

Here are a few very relevant ESA announcements for our community:

1. Open Space Innovation Platform – OSIP – Campaign: ‪Investigating Biological and Physical Effects of Radiation” (IBPER)

 The call specifically includes Astrobiology: Exploring the potential for life in extreme environments by simulating space radiation conditions and studying its effects on microorganisms.

The schedule for the IBPER Announcement of Opportunity is as follows:

  • Release the AO – 13th January 2025
  • Letter of Intent –  13th February 2025
  • Virtual Workshop Q&A session: 24th February 2025
  • The link to the conference: Join the meeting now
  • Full proposals deadline – 23rd  March 2025

Investigator’s Workshop at the GSI site in Darmstadt- Fall 2025 (date to be announced)

2. Open call for members in the ESA Life Science Working Group or Physical Sciences Working Group

Open Space Innovation Platform – OSIP – Campaign: ‪Call for Expression of Interest to become a Member of ESA’s Life Sciences Working Group (LSWG) or ESA’s Physical Sciences Working Group (PSWG)‬

The deadline for submission of expressions of interest in response to the present Call is: 28 February 2025 at 23:59 CET

This call is open to Early Career Researchers. Interested persons are invited to contact current or past members of the LSWG (https://scispace.esa.int/working-groups/life-sciences-working-group/) and PSWG (https://scispace.esa.int/working-groups/physical-sciencesworking-group-pswg/) to know more about these committees.

3. CORA Ground-Based Facilities – SciSpacE (continuously open call)

ESA provides access to a variety of ground platforms and gives scientists an opportunity to conduct research necessary to advance knowledge relevant to the effects of space on humans and/or biological life in general, as well as on physical or material science and systems, aiming to enable space exploration.