8. Searching for Life Beyond the Pale Blue Dot

In this episode we feature Dr. Nathalie Cabrol, a French American astrobiologist specializing in planetary science. She has been a Principal Investigator (PI) at the SETI Institute since 1998 and is also the Director of the Carl Sagan Center for Research. She leads projects in planetary science and astrobiology, develops science exploration strategies for Mars, Titan, and the Outer Solar System icy moons, and designs robotic field experiments. Nathalie has received several NASA & other research awards. Her work is featured in the US and international media, including the Discovery Channel, NOVA, National Geographic, Scientific American, Ted talks, and much more. 

For this interview I spoke with Nathalie just before her most recent research trip to the Andes, where she explores high altitude lakes where environmental conditions are analogous to early Mars. During the interview she describes her amazing work in astrobiology plus her incredible story of how she first met Carl Sagan while she was a student working on her thesis. 

For more info, visit https://www.seti.org/ 

Pale Blue Dot photo source: NASA/JPL-Caltech
Voyager 1 illustration: NASA/JPL-Caltech, NASA/JPL-Caltech Photojournal

Special thanks to Melisande from Space Coast Florida Launches for sharing her space journey! https://www.facebook.com/groups/Space.Coast.Florida.Launches/