Current Trends in Astrobiology

Astrobiology is a rapidly emerging field of intense scientific and technological activity, evident from the numerous recent space probes attempting to look for the possible existence of alien primeval life. This book explores the possibility of life on other planets and moons and exoplanets, either in their parent stars habitable zones or as free-floating exoplanets. The wide range of topics discussed here include environments influencing the origin and evolution of life and cosmological effects, such as the implications of a dark energy-dominated universe for astrobiology. Astrobiology is a highly interdisciplinary subject involving astronomy, physics, biology, geology, and chemistry, in addition to being a technology-intensive discipline. This book highlights the various methods used to detect possible advanced alien technology combining all these areas.