Life in the Universe

Mexborough & Swinton Astronomical Society presents

Life in the Universe

Thursday February 12th, 2026 7:30pm

Hybrid meeting

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As it stands today, life on Earth is the only example we know. Our speaker will outline
the history of life on Earth and comment on whether or not it's reasonable to expect
from what we know of Earthly life that similar simple (single-celled) or complex
(multi-cellular) life is likely exist elsewhere.

Until recently the existence or absence of extraterrestrial life was a matter of
speculation, but seeking evidence of it is now one of the most active and obsessive
pursuits in contemporary astronomy. Within a few decades we will have explored
potential sites for past or present life in the solar system and characterised Earth-like
planets around other stars in the solar neighborhood, and we will be able to assess
whether or not simple microbial life is common or unusual in the galaxy.

Searches are also underway for signals broadcast by possible advanced civilisations
elsewhere in our galaxy. I will summarise the motivations, the techniques used, and
the prospects for the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI).

The future discovery of life, especially intelligent life, elsewhere in the Universe is
often presented as something that would have profound cultural implications and
that it would change utterly our conception of the Universe and our place in it.
We will also comment on whether or not such predictions are justified.

Our speaker: Professor Matt Griffin is a member of the Cardiff Hub for Astrophysics
Research and Technology (CHART). He studied Electrical Engineering at University
College Dublin and Astrophysics at Queen Mary College London, receiving his PhD
in 1985. His research work has included the development of many instruments for
both ground-based and space-borne observatories, and their use in the study of
planetary atmospheres, star formation, and galaxy evolution. He was the Principal
Investigator for the SPIRE instrument on board ESA's Herschel Space Observatory.
Currently he is UK Co-PI in the international consortium building the scientific
payload for ESA’s Ariel mission to characterise the atmospheres of exoplanets,
and a member of the team developing the PRobe Infrared Mission for Astrophysics
(PRIMA) as a future NASA far infrared space observatory.

This meeting is also available online via Zoom