Life in Our Universe

Course Overview

Peer into the exciting new field of astrobiology and learn what science knows about one of the most fundamental questions of all time: Is there life elsewhere in the universe?

Course No. 1898

Are we alone in the universe? This course explores the cutting-edge research suggesting life may exist beyond Earth. Professor Close guides you through Earth’s remarkable 3.5-billion-year habitable history, the search for microbial life in our solar system, and the hunt for Earth-like exoplanets. Key questions include:

• What conditions allow life to emerge?
• Could Mars, Venus, or icy moons host life?
• How do we detect habitable worlds around other stars?
• Is intelligent extraterrestrial life possible?

Video Lectures

Module 1: Foundations of Astrobiology

1. Is There Life Elsewhere in Our Universe? (30 min)
   Introduction to astrobiology’s five core questions and technological breakthroughs enabling discovery.
2. Bang! A Universe Built for Life (29 min)
   How the Big Bang created elements essential for life.
3. A Star Is Born: Forming the Solar System (30 min)
   Planet formation from planetesimals and the role of asteroids/comets.
4. The Early Earth and Its Moon (31 min)
   Earth’s unique properties that sustained life for billions of years.

Module 2: Life on Earth and Beyond

5. Impacts: Bringers of Death … or Life? (29 min)
   The Late Heavy Bombardment and asteroid threats to Earth.
6. Evidence of the First Life on Earth (31 min)
   Earth’s climate stability and earliest life forms.
7. Common Themes for All Life on Earth (30 min)
   Shared traits of terrestrial life and the Biosphere 2 experiment.
8. Origin of Terrestrial Life (30 min)
   Theories on life’s emergence from nonliving matter.

Module 3: Searching Our Solar System

9. Astrobiology: Life beyond Earth (27 min)
   Why liquid water is crucial for life and alternative solvents.
10. Has Mars Always Been Dead? (28 min)
    Mars’ potential for past or present life.
11. Evidence for Fossilized Life from Mars (28 min)
    The 1996 Martian meteorite controversy and panspermia theory.
12. Could Life Ever Have Existed on Venus? (31 min)
    Venus’ extreme conditions and lost water.

Module 4: Ocean Worlds and Exoplanets

13. Liquid Assets: The Moons of Jupiter (31 min)
    Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto’s subsurface oceans.
14. Liquid on Titan and Enceladus (32 min)
    Saturn’s moons and the Huygens Probe discoveries.
15. Discovery of Extrasolar Planets (29 min)
    Methods to detect planets around other stars.
16. The Kepler Spacecraft’s Planets (30 min)
    Kepler’s findings on exoplanet diversity.

Module 5: Intelligent Life and Future Frontiers

17. A Tour of Exotic Alien Solar Systems (31 min)
    Hot Jupiters, super-Earths, and Earth-like exoplanets.
18. Extraterrestrial Intelligent Life (29 min)
    Estimating the prevalence of intelligent civilizations.
19. SETI: The Search for Intelligent Life (31 min)
    The Drake Equation and interstellar communication challenges.
20. The Fermi Paradox: Where Is Everyone? (31 min)
    Why we haven’t found evidence of alien civilizations.

Module 6: Humanity’s Cosmic Future

21. Space Travel: A Reality Check (32 min)
    Obstacles and theoretical solutions for interstellar travel.
22. Terraforming a Planet (30 min)
    Engineering Mars or Venus to support human life.
23. The Future of Terrestrial Life (32 min)
    Why Earth’s long-term habitability is uncertain.
24. The Search for Another Earth (36 min)
    Next-gen missions to identify habitable exoplanets.