B
Workshop Agenda
DECEMBER 5, 2016
8:30 a.m. | Welcome |
Michael Moloney, Director, Space Studies Board and Aeronautics and Space Engineering Board |
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8:35 | Introduction to the Workshop |
Jim Kasting, Workshop Planning Committee Chair |
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Session 1: Setting the Stage | |
Moderator: Jim Kasting, Penn State University | |
8:40 | How Likely Is It that Life Exists off the Earth? |
John Baross, University of Washington |
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9:15 | Current Understanding of the Environmental Limits of Life and Life’s Interactions with Its Environment |
Tori Hoehler, NASA Ames |
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9:50 | Is Life a Cosmic Imperative: How Did Thermodynamics Force Life into Existence? |
Eric Smith, Santa Fe Institute |
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10:25 | Break |
Session 2: Habitable Environments in the Solar System | |
Moderators: Bethany Ehlmann, Caltech and Britney Schmidt, Georgia Tech | |
11:00 | Habitable Environments on Present and Ancient Mars |
John Grotzinger, Caltech |
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11:35 | Habitable Environments on Ocean Worlds |
Kevin Hand, Jet Propulsion Laboratory |
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12:10 p.m. | Planning for the Exploration of Mars and Ocean Worlds |
Ellen Stofan, NASA |
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12:30 | Lunch (Poster Viewing Opportunity) |
Session 3: Exoplanets | |
Moderators: David Des Marais, NASA Ames and Dimitar Sasselov, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics | |
2:00 | Current State of Knowledge of Exoplanets and Their Habitability |
Vikki Meadows, University of Washington |
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2:35 | Extrasolar Biosignatures: Thinking Out of the Box |
William Bains, Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
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3:10 | Break (Poster Viewing Opportunity) |
3:30 | Technology Needs to Discover Earth 2.0 |
Nick Siegler, Jet Propulsion Laboratory |
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4:05 | Prospects for Ground-Based Characterization of Proxima Centauri b |
Matteo Brogi, University of Colorado, Boulder |
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4:40 | General Discussion: Practical Biosignatures that Can Be Exploited to Search for Life In Situ in the Solar System and from Afar on Extrasolar Worlds |
Moderator: Gary Blackwood, Jet Propulsion Laboratory |
Session 4: Poster Session | |
5:30 | Small Bites, and Reception in Atrium |
8:30 | Adjourn for the Day |
DECEMBER 6, 2016 | |
Session 5: Life Detection Techniques | |
Moderators: Gary Ruvkun, Harvard Medical School and John Baross, University of Washington | |
8:30 a.m. | Life Detection: 40 Years after Viking |
Ben Clark, Space Science Institute |
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9:05 | Signatures of Life as We Know It |
Gary Ruvkun, Massachusetts General Hospital |
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9:40 | Signatures of Life as We Don’t Know It |
Steve Benner, the Foundation for Applied Molecular Evolution |
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10:15 | Break: Poster Viewing Opportunity |
Session 6: Instrumentation | |
Moderators: Phil Neches, Teradata Corporation and Nilton Renno, University of Michigan | |
10:45 | In Situ Life Detection in the Context of Plume Fly Thru Missions |
Morgan Cable, Jet Propulsion Laboratory |
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11:15 | Life Detection Capabilities of LUVOIR and HabEx |
Shawn Domagal-Goldman, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center |
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11:45 | In Situ Detection of Organics on Mars |
Jen Eigenbrode, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center |
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12:15 p.m. | Instructions for Afternoon Breakout Groups |
Jim Kasting, Workshop Planning Committee Chair |
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12:25 | Lunch (Poster Viewing Opportunity) |
Session 7: Future Directions | |
2:00 | Breakout Groups |
Focus Question: How Could Targeted Research Over the Next 5-10 Years Help Advance the State of the Art for Life Detection, Including Instrumentation and Precursor Research | |
Discussion Topics: | |
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Moderators: | |
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3:15 | Break (Poster Viewing Opportunity) |
Session Moderators to Collect Thoughts in Preparation for Report Back to the Group | |
4:00 | Report Back from Breakout Group |
General Discussion | |
Moderator: John Grunsfeld, NASA (retired) | |
Session 8: Conclusions | |
5:30 | Summary of Key Points Raised During the Workshop and Concluding Remarks |
Jim Kasting, Workshop Planning Committee Chair |
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6:00 | Workshop Adjourned |