The search for alien life defines a new era of space exploration. Learn how scientists hope to find life beyond Earth, and explore what that means for humanity.

Alien Worlds: UCR's Cosmic Frontier

Jan 16, Tuesday 6:00PM

Speaker: Stephen Kane, Associate Professor of
Planetary Astrophysics and Associate Director,
Alternative Earths Astrobiology Center

Dr. Kane will describe UCR’s newest cosmic
research frontier—the detection and
characterization of planets orbiting distant stars
using data from many of the world’s most
important telescopes.

NASA Astrobiology: Celebrating 20 Years

Feb 13, Tuesday 6:00PM

Speaker: Timothy Lyons, Distinguished
Professor of Biogeochemistry, Department of
Earth Sciences and Director, Alternative Earths
Astrobiology Center

Dr. Lyons will describe how he and other UCR
scientists use discoveries about the evolution of
early Earth to guide NASA’s search for life
elsewhere in the universe—and how this effort
builds on 20 years of Astrobiology at NASA.

Craters, Collisions, and Cosmic Catastrophes

Mar 13, Tuesday 6:00PM

Speaker: Simone Marchi, Principal Scientist,
Southwest Research Institute

Dr. Marchi will describe how the rocky
surfaces of the Earth, moon, and Mars provide
"snapshots" of the bombardment history of the
inner solar system—which in turn can tell us
about the early history of these planets as life
was first evolving.

Cassini's Legacy: Saturn's Secrets Revealed

Apr 17, Tuesday 6:00PM

Speaker: Trina Ray, Senior Science Systems
Engineer at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Trina Ray will highlight the most exciting
discoveries of NASA’s 20-year mission to
Saturn, including astrobiological discoveries
from two of its 53 known moons: ice-encrusted
Enceladus and Mercury-sized Titan.

Location: UCR Palm Desert

UCR Palm Desert, 75080 Frank Sinatra Drive, Palm Desert, CA | 760-834-0800 | palmdesert.ucr.edu