OOIR: Observatory of International Research

Papers

(The TQCC of Astrobiology is 8. The table below lists those papers that are above that threshold based on CrossRef citation counts [max. 250 papers]. The publications cover those that have been published in the past four years, i.e., from 2021-12-01 to 2025-12-01.)

Article	Citations
Spore Survival During Abrasive Saltation on Mars: A Comment on Bak et al.	57
Deoxyribonucleic Acid Extraction from Mars Analog Soils and Their Characterization with Solid-State Nanopores	49
Life Detection and Microbial Biomarker Profiling with Signs of Life Detector-Life Detector Chip During a Mars Drilling Simulation Campaign in the Hyperarid Core of the Atacama Desert	41
Chapter 10: Planetary Protection—History, Science, and the Future	41
Novel Chimeric Amino Acid-Fatty Alcohol Ester Amphiphiles Self-Assemble into Stable Primitive Membranes in Diverse Geological Settings	39
Self-Shielding Enhanced Organics Synthesis in an Early Reduced Earth’s Atmosphere	39
Proteomic Insights into Psychrophile Growth in Perchlorate-Amended Subzero Conditions: Implications for Martian Life Detection	36
Hydrothermal Regeneration of Ammonium as a Basin-Scale Driver of Primary Productivity	36
Extremophiles in Earth's Deep Seas: A View Toward Life in Exo-Oceans	35
Ultraviolet Resistance of Microorganisms Isolated from Uranium-Rich Minerals from Perus, Brazil	33
Linear Ion Trap Mass Spectrometer (LITMS) Instrument Field and Laboratory Tests as Part of the ARADS Field Campaigns	31
Protective Effects of Halite to Vacuum and Vacuum-Ultraviolet Radiation: A Potential Scenario During a Young Sun Superflare	26
What Would an Alien Amino Acid Alphabet Look Like and Why?	25
An Accounting of Contamination Control Requirements, Implementation, and Verification of the Sample Tubes for the Mars 2020 Mission and Future Return Sample Science	25
Exploiting the Unique Biology of Caenorhabditis elegans to Launch Neurodegeneration Studies in Space	25
Sharp Rise in Cosmic Ray Irradiation of Organisms on Earth Caused by a Nearby SN Shockwave Passage	25
Mesoarchean Microbial Cd, Ba, and Ni Cycling: Evidence for Photosynthesis in Pongola Group Stromatolites through Novel Stable Isotopes and High-Resolution Trace Element Maps	24
Challenges and Opportunities in Using Amino Acids to Decode Carbonaceous Chondrite and Asteroid Parent Body Processes	24
Haloferax volcanii Remains Viable and Shows Morphological Changes under Anoxic (CO₂-Enriched) and Hypobaric (2.4 kPa) Atmospheric Conditions	24
The Call for a New Definition of Biosignature	23
Traces of Bacterial Contribution to Calcite Weathering Detected by Statistical Characterizations of Surface Microtopography	21
Boron as a Hypothetical Participant in the Prebiological Enantiomeric Enrichment	20
Scientific Targets of Tanpopo: Astrobiology Exposure and Micrometeoroid Capture Experiments at the Japanese Experiment Module Exposed Facility of the International Space Station	20
Eta-Earth Revisited I: A Formula for Estimating the Maximum Number of Earth-Like Habitats	19
Structural Biosignatures—A Category of Potential Biosignatures in the Life Detection Knowledge Base	19

Strong Evidence that Abiogenesis Is a Rapid Process on Earth Analogs	19
Organic Biosignature Degradation in Hydrothermal and Serpentinizing Environments: Implications for Life Detection on Icy Moons and Mars	19
Astrobiological Implications of Interstellar Material in the Solar System	19
Undecanoic Acid and L-Phenylalanine in Vermiculite: Detection, Characterization, and UV Degradation Studies for Biosignature Identification on Mars	19
UV Transmission in Prebiotic Environments on Early Earth	18
Duplex Formation and the Origins of Homochirality	18
Correction to: Simplified Meteorite Parent Body Alteration of Amino Acids by Hydrothermal Processes (Doi: 10.1089/Ast.2024.0096)	18
The New Astronomical Frontier of Interstellar Objects	18
Nitrogen Incorporation in Potassic and Micro- and Meso-Porous Minerals: Potential Biogeochemical Records and Targets for Mars Sampling	18
An Interview with Dr. Sara Seager	17
A Review of the “Black Beauty” Martian Regolith Breccia and Its Martian Habitability Record	17
The Impact of Extreme Low Temperatures on Raman Spectra of Amino Acids Relevant for the Search for Life on Europa	16
Quantum Dots in Peroxidase-like Chemistry and Formamide-Based Hot Spring Synthesis of Nucleobases	15
Absorption and Scattering of UV and Visible Light Through Simulated Martian Regoliths and Rock Samples	15
Effects of UV and Calcium Perchlorates on Uracil Deposited on Strontium Fluoride Substrates at Mars Pressure and Temperature	14
Out of Thin Air? Astrobiology and Atmospheric Chemotrophy	14
Space Radiation Dosimetry at the Exposure Facility of the International Space Station for the Tanpopo Mission	14
Future of the Search for Life: Workshop Report	14
Using Organic Contaminants to Constrain the Terrestrial Journey of the Martian Meteorite Lafayette	14
Measurement of Photochemical Haze Refractive Indices and Hygroscopicity: Influence of CO₂ in CH₄/H₂S/N₂ Mixtures	14
Crystal Habits as Potential Biosignatures	13
Final Report of the Mars Sample Return Science Planning Group 2 (MSPG2)	13
Planetary Protection Knowledge Gap Closure Enabling Crewed Missions to Mars	13
Prebiotic Nucleoside Phosphorylation in a Simulated Deep-Sea Supercritical Carbon Dioxide–Water Two-Phase Environment	13
The Radiation Environment of Ceres and Implications for Surface Sampling	12
Different Scenarios for the Origin and the Subsequent Succession of a Hypothetical Microbial Community in the Cloud Layer of Venus	12
An Overview of Lipid Biomarkers in Terrestrial Extreme Environments with Relevance for Mars Exploration	12
Spectroscopic Protocol for Biosignature Detection: Arctic Ice Samples as Analogs for Icy Moons	12
Catalytic Synthesis of Polyribonucleic Acid on Prebiotic Rock Glasses	12
Geochemical Mobility of Elements in Antarctic Environments Affected by CO ₂ -Rich Hydrothermal Fluids: Astrobiological Implications	12
Chapter 4: A Geological and Chemical Context for the Origins of Life on Early Earth	12
Chemical, Thermal, and Radiation Resistance of an Iron Porphyrin: A Model Study of Biosignature Stability	12
Bridging Place-Based Astrobiology Education with Genomics, Including Descriptions of Three Novel Bacterial Species Isolated from Mars Analog Sites of Cultural Relevance	12
Determining the “Biosignature Threshold” for Life Detection on Biotic, Abiotic, or Prebiotic Worlds	11
Exoplanet Innovators Interview: Sara Seager Interviews Jim Kasting	11
Experimental Identification of Potential Martian Biosignatures in Open and Closed Systems	10
Rosalind Franklin Society Proudly Announces the 2023 Award Recipient for Astrobiology	10
Are Large Sulfur Isotope Variations Biosignatures in an Ancient, Impact-Induced Hydrothermal Mars Analog?	10
Recommendation on Orbiting Sample Cleanliness	10
Humid Evolution of Haze in the Atmosphere of Super-Earths in the Habitable Zone	10
Dispersion of Bacteria by Low-Pressure Boiling: Life Detection in Enceladus' Plume Material	10
Simple Lipids Form Stable Higher-Order Structures in Concentrated Sulfuric Acid	10
Spore Survival During Abrasive Saltation on Mars: A Reply to the Comment by Minns et al.	10
Life Detection Knowledge Base: Assessment Criteria for Potential Biosignatures	10
Eta-Earth Revisited II: Deriving a Maximum Number of Earth-Like Habitats in the Galactic Disk	10
Recovery of Lipid Biomarkers in Hot Spring Digitate Silica Sinter as Analogs for Potential Biosignatures on Mars: Results from Laboratory and Flight-Like Experiments	9
A Mission Simulating the Search for Life on Mars with Automated Drilling, Sample Handling, and Life Detection Instruments Performed in the Hyperarid Core of the Atacama Desert, Chile	9
Preservation of Terrestrial Microorganisms and Organics Within Alteration Products of Chondritic Meteorites from the Nullarbor Plain, Australia	9
Ancient Siliciclastic–Evaporites as Seen by Remote Sensing Instrumentation with Implications for the Rover-Scale Exploration of Sedimentary Environments on Mars	9
Astrobiology by Gavriil Tikhov	9

Preliminary Planning for Mars Sample Return (MSR) Curation Activities in a Sample Receiving Facility (SRF)	9
Preservation of Extracellular Sheaths Produced by Iron-Oxidizing Bacteria: An Analog for Potential Morphological Biosignatures on Mars	9
Building Identity and Community for Early Career Professionals in the Emerging Field of Astrobiology	9
A Bayesian Analysis of the Probability of the Origin of Life Per Site Conducive to Abiogenesis	9
Mars Sample Return Sample Receiving Project Measurement Definition Team Final Report	9
Rosalind Franklin Society Proudly Announces the 2022 Award Recipient for Astrobiology	9
Inducing Homochirality Through Intermediary Catalytic Species: A Stochastic Approach	9
Considerations for Detecting Organic Indicators of Metabolism on Enceladus	9
Testing Abiotic Reduction of NAD⁺ Directly Mediated by Iron/Sulfur Minerals	9
Mathematical Model of Antibiotic Resistance Determinants' Stability Under Space Flight Conditions	9
Quantifying the Bioavailable Energy in an Ancient Hydrothermal Vent on Mars and a Modern Earth-Based Analog	8
Introduction to the Life Detection Knowledge Base Project	8
Impact of M Dwarfs Ultraviolet Radiation on Prebiotic Chemistry: The Case of Adenine	8
Evaluation of Decontamination Potential of Wet Wipes Against Microbial Contamination of Chinese Spacecraft Materials	8
Quantifying the Potential for Nitrate-Dependent Iron Oxidation on Early Mars: Implications for the Interpretation of Gale Crater Organics	8
Microbial Motility at the Bottom of North America: Digital Holographic Microscopy and Genomic Motility Signatures in Badwater Spring, Death Valley National Park	8
Directional Aspects of Vegetation Linear and Circular Polarization Biosignatures	8
Photochemical Synthesis of Ammonia and Amino Acids from Nitrous Oxide	8
A Machine-Learning Approach to Biosignature Exploration on Early Earth and Mars Using Sulfur Isotope and Trace Element Data in Pyrite	8
Does Gaia Play Dice? Simple Models of Non-Darwinian Selection	8
Effects of Desiccation and Freezing on Microbial Ionizing Radiation Survivability: Considerations for Mars Sample Return	8
Experimental Models on the Prebiotic Formation of Biopolymer Building Blocks	8
Hot Spring Microbial Community Elemental Composition: Hot Spring and Soil Inputs, and the Transition from Biocumulus to Siliceous Sinter	8
Life Detection on Icy Moons Using Flow Cytometry and Exogenous Fluorescent Stains	8
Mars Sample Return (MSR): Planning for Returned Sample Science	8
DNA Polymerization in Icy Moon Abyssal Pressure Conditions	8
Preface to Eta-Earth Revisited: How Common Are Earth-like Habitats in the Galaxy?	8
Integrated Molar Absorptivity of Mid- and Far-Infrared Spectra of Alanine and a Selection of Other Five Amino Acids of Astrobiological Relevance	8