Ocean World Analog Field Site Assessment Workshop

The workshop is sponsored by the Network for Ocean Worlds (NOW) and the Network for Life Detection (NfoLD) and is planned as an in-person workshop with the availability of virtual participation. The organizers are monitoring the current COVID situation, and the workshop format will be adjusted as necessary.

Purpose and Scope

Our understanding of Ocean and Icy Worlds in our solar system is built on the scaffolding of oceanographic and cryospheric work conducted in the field by Earth Scientists, combined with the observational and modeling work of Planetary Scientists. As opportunities to conduct in situ analyses on Ocean Worlds are few and far between, fieldwork at terrestrial sites is crucial for advancing our knowledge and understanding of processes on Ocean and Icy worlds. While Planetary Scientists and Earth Scientists have different priorities when selecting field sites, there is significant overlap in their scientific goals. Collaboration between these two groups is vital for selecting the best field sites to support their unique and shared goals.

This workshop will bring together planetary and Earth scientists to discuss and negotiate which important qualities of a terrestrial analog claim biological, chemical, and physical fidelity to Ocean Worlds. We will design a framework for rigorous evaluation and justification of intriguing remote sites as well as lower-fidelity but more accessible sites.

Objectives:

A community-developed set of standards for evaluating Ocean Worlds Analog sites that assesses the fidelity of each site on a continuum of objectives with respect to the science questions posed

An assessment of the effectiveness of this framework using specific field site examples

A (hopefully) consensus document with “best practices” guidelines to gauge the fidelity of analogy sites

Registration

Attendees must submit an application to be selected to attend the workshop. The application and eligibility details can be found on the workshop registration page.

Meeting Portal Updates: We have modified the meeting portal to follow best practices that support inclusion, diversity, equity, and accessibility. We encourage you to log into the meeting portal before the conference to update your profile information. From the meeting portal home page, click on Edit Profile to get started.

Astrobiology