A geologist, Dr. Ohmoto explores questions about the atmosphere, climate, and evolution of life on our planet. He travels around the world collecting ancient rocks that might help him to unravel the mysteries of primitive Earth. For instance, after analyzing the chemical content of rocks that date to 2.3 billion years ago, Dr. Ohmoto concluded that there must have been oxygen in Earth's atmosphere and life on Earth's land at that time. He concluded that Earth's land masses were covered with living organisms at least a billion years earlier than most scientists had suspected. By learning how quickly and under what conditions life evolved on Earth, astrobiologists such as Dr. Ohmoto are developing a roadmap for finding life in space.
Extraterrestrials still exist only in our imaginations.
But Dr. Ohmoto would say that's a good starting point. You should see things with your own mind. This week, WHAT'S IN THE NEWS takes a look at the new field of astrobiology and the search for extraterrestrial life.