Nowadays, astrobiology gains the same importance when space studies have pace. Before explaining scientists' journey, namely astrobiologists, let's briefly ask what astrobiology is. Astrobiology, a multidisciplinary field that includes space sciences and biology, is very interesting. As the name suggests, astrobiology includes biology and space sciences. It is an interdisciplinary field that also includes areas such as geology, chemistry, and physics. Astrobiology was initially known as "exobiology." In 1995, with the birth of the NASA Astrobiology Program, astrobiology began to be widely used.
Astrobiology is a scientific research topic. Astrobiology has a wide range of research, from the search for traces of life in space to the question of how life came to be on earth. Here the definition of astrobiology should be made carefully. All of the hypotheses put forward under this topic are of scientific origin. Subjects such as investigating the possibility of life in outer space, monitoring biomarkers, and even the role of biology in studies of extraterrestrial colonization fall within the field of astrobiology and space biology, which includes it.
Steps to Become an Astrobiologist
In the first step, we understood what astrobiology is. As a second step, we need to deepen our knowledge of astrobiology. We have to train ourselves to have a career in astrobiology. There are various courses available in this field that we can find on the internet. Some of these courses are paid, and some are free. I would like to share with you what I recommend for these courses. There are various courses on the Coursera Platform. The first is a course suitable for the beginner level, with the explanation of Charles Cockell from Edinburgh University. For a more detailed course, I suggest introducing you to Chris Impey from Arizona, famous for his astrobiology studies. He teaches a very comprehensive course on astrobiology on Coursera. At the same time, Chris Impey's introductory Astronomy course is among the ones I recommend to better lay the foundation of astrobiology. Unlike Coursera, there is also a platform called "astrobiovideo" that hosts various astrobiology video lessons. There are courses on cosmology and astronomy at Khan Academy. The courses mentioned here will train and prepare people who want to work for a career in astrobiology. Adding these courses to your resume will be a reference for future programs.
In addition to online courses during your undergraduate education, attending classes such as astrobiology, cosmic biology, and space biology is beneficial. You should attend training, meetings, and conferences on astrobiology and connect with the people there. It is helpful to participate in activities on astrobiology and the question of how life came into existence, which forms the basis of astrobiology and evolution. For example, Middle East Technical University organizes an Astrobiology conference every year. Apart from discussions, this community regularly shares and publishes their meetings with astrobiologists from various parts of the world, especially with the spread of online work during the pandemic period. You can follow the AbGradCon page to follow conferences and events.
Except for online courses, and national and international events, it is necessary to make extra efforts to develop in the field of astrobiology, especially in undergraduate years. For this purpose, books such as Astrobiology Primer published by NASA should be read, and current articles on astrobiology should be followed from article search databases such as NCBI Pubmed. Journals to be reviewed include the International Journal of Astrobiology and Astrobiology.
Communication with astrobiologists is also essential. Before the internships we can do during undergraduate education, we must contact scientists even to qualify for these internships. There is a video series called “Ask an astrobiologist” on the YouTube NASA Astrobiology channel. Interviews with various astrobiologists have been published here. I also recommend watching this series. One of the scientists we take as an example, Betül Kaçar, works at the molecular biology level and actively enters the laboratory. In contrast, another valuable scientist Lewis Dartnell uses simulations to analyze the effects of radiation on the surface of Mars.
Another activity that you can join is a summer internship. Blue Marble Space Institute of Science internships are ideal. From the intern recruiting of his changing world-renowned research on astrobiology, this program is prestigious in its preparation. Other such opportunities also exist. For example, you can follow the Western Institute for Earth & Space Exploration internship opportunities. It should be remembered that he has established a network with academicians for these internships.
After graduating, you can pursue an academic career to advance in astrobiology or gain a foothold in the private sector through your own biotechnology venture. The best example of this is the CEO and founder of the Pheronym company, Dr. Fatma Kaplan. She is developing a product to control nematodes against agricultural pests using synthetic pheromones. Pheronym company designed a project called Astronematode with the support of NASA and tested nematodes' activity in a microgravity environment. In the academic field, it is possible to start post-doctoral work in the academy by studying at the doctoral level. The list of departments opened in the field of astrobiology for Ph.D. is listed on the NASA Astrobiology website. Apart from these departments, there are many working groups in European countries, especially England. The proper way to identify these study groups is to search for the study groups that interest us while reviewing the literature.
Finally, you can check NASA's astrobiology page for astrobiology-career advice and Lewis Dartnell's "How do I become an astrobiologist?" You can read the article.
If we look at examples, there are many ways to become an astrobiologist. As long as we have a passion for space in us.
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