Astrobiology (Certificate) Program | Faculty | Application Process

Astrobiology seeks to understand the potential and actual distribution of life on earth, in our solar system and in the universe.

It addresses the origin and evolution of life on Earth, the identification of terrestrial and extraterrestrial habitats capable of supporting life, and the potential for life to exist on other planets and other solar systems.

The goal of astrobiology is to use science to answer the age-old questions "how did life start?", "how did life develop?" and "are we alone in the universe?"

Astrobiology is deeply interdisciplinary that brings together astrophysics, planetary and atmospheric sciences, geology, chemistry, molecular biology, and evolutionary biology.

In addition, it crosses the boundary between science and the humanities, with connections to philosophy, sociology, history, political science, journalism and 'popular culture'.

The University of Colorado at Boulder is a member of the NASA Astrobiology Institute (NAI).

The CU Center for Astrobiology (CAB) brings together faculty from departments and institutes across campus, and has ties to programs at Lockheed-Martin Astronautics in southwest Denver and to Southwest Research Institute in downtown Boulder.

CAB supports a seminar series in astrobiology, public symposia on major issues in astrobiology, scientific workshops to bring together the local astrobiology community, and both graduate and undergraduate courses in astrobiology.

The undergraduate Astrobiological Society seeks to encourage student interest in questions of life's origins and cosmological distribution by introducing students to the wide-range of opportunities at UC Boulder.

The new Graduate Certificate Program in astrobiology builds on student's major discipline by providing them with training in the entire breadth of the discipline.

Students are prepared to carry out the interdisciplinary research necessary for truly innovative astrobiology research.

FACULTY INTERESTS
(mainly)
Astrophysical

Planetary

Exobiology

Tom Ayres (CASA)
Veronica Bierbaum (CHEM)
John Bally (APS/CASA)
Hal Levison (SWRI)
Bo Reipurth (CASA)
Glen Stewart (LASP)
Ted Snow (APS, CASA)

Mark Bullock (SWRI)
Benton C. Clark (LMA)
David Grinspoon (APS/LASP)
Bruce Jakosky (GEOL/LASP)
Stephen Mojzsis (GEOL)

Evolutionary Biology

Molecular Biology

Societal Issues

Alan de Quiroz (EPOB)
William Friedman (EPOB)
Michael Grant (EPOB)
Diane McKnight (CVLE)
Steve Schmidt (EPOB)
Veronica Vaida (CHEM)

Shelley Copley (MCDB)
Vasant Jadhav (MCDB)
Norman Pace (MCDB)
Arthur Pardi (CHEM)
Kevin Peters (CHEM)
Scott Seiwert (CHEM)
John Spear (MCDB)
Olke Uhlenbeck (CHEM)
Mike Yarus (MCDB)

Carol Cleland (PHIL)
Rodney Taylor (RELI)
Tom Yulsman (JOUR)