What exactly is “life”? Astrobiologists still have more questions than answers

sciart0
Aug 14
1 min read

Our Earthbound definitions of life could leave us blind to the Universe’s strangest forms.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Defining life has long been a deceptively tricky problem.
With only Earth’s lifeforms to study, scientists might overlook strange forms of alien life on future space missions.
While traits like energy intake and reproduction seem universal, the search for life must remain open to unexpected forms, writes astrobiologist Dirk Schulze-Makuch.

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