Name: Are We Alone? From Ancient Fossils to Alien Hunters
Start: 2026-05-19T19:00:00
End: 2026-05-19T21:00:00
Location: The Landmark

How do we recognise life when we see it—and could we find it beyond Earth? From decoding the chemistry of Earth’s oldest fossils to studying planet-forming gas around distant stars, this talk explores how life begins and where it might exist elsewhere. You’ll also discover how the search for aliens isn’t just for scientists—anyone can play a part in uncovering life beyond our planet.

Life Beyond our Planet: How fossils on Earth could help us find it

Katy Field (PhD Student)

Ever wondered how we identify the earliest traces of life on Earth? Through chemistry we can explore what makes ancient fossils unique and how we can apply that data to the search for life on Mars.

Echos of Creation: What Gas around Stars can tell us

Sorcha Mac Manamon (PhD Student)

I study the gas around nearby young stars, with the highest resolution observations ever taken of them with ALMA, to see what we can find out about how water was delivered into Earth.

How you can help find Aliens!

Oisin Creaner (Assistant Professor)

Finding alien life is a team effort. Everyone from schoolkids to backyard astronomers to billion-euro space telescopes has a part they can play. I’ll explain what we’re looking for and why, then what you can do to help.

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