Meaning & use
exobiology
Last updated
Meanings
noununcountablebiology
The scientific study of whether life exists or could exist anywhere other than Earth, and what it might be like.
Grammar: Takes a singular verb: exobiology is a young field.
Patterns
- research in exobiology
- a specialist in exobiology
She studied exobiology because she wanted to know if microbes could survive on Mars.
Early exobiology relied on theory, since no samples from other worlds were available.
The university added a course in exobiology to its science program.
noununcountablespecialist
The area of research that examines how living things cope with the conditions of space, such as radiation and weightlessness.
Grammar: A narrower, older use that is now often placed under space biology.
Patterns
- experiments in exobiology
Experiments in exobiology tested how bacteria survive on the outside of a spacecraft.
Early satellites carried seeds for exobiology research.
The lab combined exobiology with studies of astronaut health.
Common combinations
- exobiology research
- Exobiology research often starts with extreme habitats on Earth.
- a branch of exobiology
- Searching for microbes on Mars is a branch of exobiology.
- study exobiology
- He chose to study exobiology after reading about ocean worlds.
- field of exobiology
- The field of exobiology has grown with each new exoplanet discovery.
- exobiology laboratory
- The exobiology laboratory grows microbes in simulated Martian soil.
Synonyms and how they differ
- astrobiology
- Astrobiology is the modern, more widely used name, and it covers the origin of life as well as the search for it elsewhere.
- xenobiology
- Xenobiology is mostly used in science fiction or for biology of unfamiliar life forms, so it sounds less like a standard science than exobiology.
- bioastronomy
- Bioastronomy leans toward the astronomical side, such as spotting signs of life in distant atmospheres.
Word family
- exobiologist noun
- a scientist who studies life beyond Earth
- exobiological adjective
- relating to exobiology
- biology noun
- the study of living things
- exoplanet noun
- a planet outside our solar system
Commonly confused: exobiology or exobiology and ecology?
exobiology vs exobiology and ecology
Ecology studies how living things relate to their environment on Earth, while exobiology looks for life beyond it.
Practice
A scientist who works in exobiology is most likely trying to find out whether ___.
Choose one answer.
Exobiology deals with possible life beyond Earth. The other options are matters for geology, ecology or medicine on Earth.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “exobiology”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.