One of yesterday's highlights at #COSPAR2026 was the agency leaders' roundtable. It was fascinating to hear representatives from #ASI, #CSA, #ESA, #JAXA, #ISRO, #KASA, #NASA, #NSSC and #UAESA discuss the challenges and future of space exploration. 🚀🌍

Excited to be presenting today at #COSPAR2026 I'll be talking about trace gas oxidising-based microbial communities in #Etna volcanic soils and what they can tell us about early #planetary biospheres and #Mars analogues. Looking forward to some great discussions! #Astrobiology #Geomicrobiology

1/2🧵🔴 Mars Perseverance Sol 1927: Right Mastcam-Z Camera / enhanced 🔭🧪 July 22, 2026, 10:30:56 Source: mars.nasa.gov/mars2020/mul... Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU/Jackie Branc #Mars #Perseverance

Sol 1928: Left Navcam, taken at 12:07:43.575 (local mean solar time)

After looking at the chemistry, elemental composition, and microscopic structure of these #volcanic soils, today I'm looking at their crystalline mineral phases. A bunch of data is coming up all together. #PXRD #XRD #Mineralogy #Geomicrobiology #Volcanology #Astrobiology

FTIR day! 🌋🧪 Looking at the infrared fingerprints of volcanic soil to identify the minerals and chemical groups present. This would better characterise the soils giving hint on possible #biosignature. #FTIR #Geomicrobiology #Astrobiology

This time we go under scanning electron microscopy🔬🌋 A closer look at volcanic soils reveals the world, trying to get some biological activity in it. #SEM #Geomicrobiology #Astrobiology

Today's job: microwave digestion of volcanic soil samples in nitric acid before ICP-MS analysis. Looking forward to see what the elemental chemistry could tell us. #ICPMS #Geochemistry #Geomicrobiology #Volcanology #Astrobiology #Research

📢 #PhD opportunity! A fully funded PhD available in Dr. @matehg.bsky.social lab at the University of Birmingham (October 2026). The project investigates microbial responses to atmospheric mercury and carbon monoxide in volcanic environments. Feel free to contact her if you're interested! 🌋

Not every day in research is about conferences. Today it's Raman spectroscopy on my volcanic samples. Every spectrum is another small piece of the puzzle. #RamanSpectroscopy #Geomicrobiology #Astrobiology #Volcanology #ResearchLife

A nice News highlight in @science.org on the work of my collaborator Bill Martin (we pitched in on one of the pre-prints). www.science.org/content/arti...

Metal-driven chemical reaction in deep sea may explain origin of life

Group offers new scenario for how cells came to rely on phosphate molecules to build DNA and store energy

science.org

An instrument on the Perseverance rover has identified large, complex carbon compounds alongside unusual patterns on the surface of rocks that resemble traces of microbial activity

Possible signs of ancient life on Mars are rich in complex carbon

An instrument on the Perseverance rover has identified large, complex carbon compounds alongside unusual patterns on the surface of rocks that resemble traces of microbial activity

newscientist.com

Happy to share that I'll be presenting at #COSPAR2026 in Florence this August! I'll be giving a talk on my work exploring microbial communities in volcanic soils and what they can tell us about early planetary biospheres. See you in Florence to talk about #geomicrobiology and #astrobiology!

COSPAR Panel on Planetary Protection@cospar-ppp.bsky.social · 6mo ago

Consider submitting an abstract to one of 3 Planetary Protection events at the 46th COSPAR Scientific Assembly (COSPAR 2026) cospar2026.org. The abstract deadline is 13 February! The events are: COSPAR-26-PPP.1: Policy COSPAR-26-PPP.2: Research and Development COSPAR-26-PPP.3: Future of PP for Mars

Last week I had the pleasure to present @manmetuni.bsky.social for the LAMECS. This time as a speaker talking about microbial communities in early planetary biospheres analogue. Many thanks to @amiposts.bsky.social for organising the symposium. #Geomicrobiology #Astrobiology #EarlyCareerResearch

Spending the afternoon at @ucl.ac.uk 's Your Universe festival as part of the UCL200 celebrations. Looking forward to hearing about everything from Mars exploration and dark matter to atmospheric spectroscopy. #YourUniverse #UCL200 #Astronomy #PlanetaryScience #Space #ScienceCommunication

Just arrived in London and heading to Westminster for Parliamentary Links Day at the House of Commons, representing @amiposts.bsky.social to meet the members of the parliament. #ParliamentaryLinksDay #science

Looking forward to speaking at the LAMECS taking place in Manchester. My talk will explore how microbial communities in volcanic environments can help us understand the limits of life and its potential emergence on early Earth and beyond. #Geomicrobiology #Astrobiology #Research #Science

Applied Microbiology International@amiposts.bsky.social · 3mo ago

Join us in Manchester next month for #LAMECS2026 You'll have the opportunity to: 🔵 Discover new research 🔵 Build your network 🔵 Get inspired by expert talks 🔵 Boost your CV with CPD points and certificates Register now: https://appliedmicrobiology.org/ems-event-calendar/lamecs-2026.html

Just wrapped up a very busy week where I gave a talk at the @pintofscience.uk titled: The Hitchhiker's Guide to Life in the Universe. Thanks to everyone who came along and to the organisers for putting up the event. #PintOfScience #pint26 #Astrobiology #ScienceCommunication #Geomicrobiology

Last day at @egu.eu 2026 in Vienna. This gets me to know more about planetary atmospheres but also listening to topics very close to mine like geochemistry and geomicrobiology and the exchange of energy and elements between microbial communitie and rocks. #EGU26 #Geoscience #Astrobiology

The answer might be 42, but what’s the question? I’ll be giving a talk at @pintofscience.uk in Norwich on May 20: “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to Life in the Universe”. Come along if you’re around! #PintOfScience #Astrobiology pintofscience.co.uk/event/from-t...

From the Beginning of Time to the Ends of the Earth

Join us on a whistle stop tour through space and time! Our planet hosts some crazy creatures living in some of the most extreme places, let's dive in and d…

pintofscience.co.uk

Excited to see our work now live! In this study on the role of CODH-utilising microbes in volcanic astrobiological analogues. Huge thanks to Marcela Hernández and all collaborators! Happy to hear thoughts! #Astrobiology #Geomicrobiology #Extremophiles #Volcanology academic.oup.com/femsec/artic...

Carbon monoxide dehydrogenase-encoding microorganisms in volcanic astrobiological analogues: an enzyme system to investigate the evolution of life

Volcanic ecosystems reveal how ancient CO-oxidizing microbes evolved CODH genes, enabling energy generation and adaptive versatility across diverse extreme

academic.oup.com

PhD Opportunity: Habitability of Enceladus & Planetary Protection Join the us to explore the habitability of Saturn’s moon Enceladus and help shape international planetary protection standards. buff.ly/rQzOZgH - studentship P9

The call for abstracts for IOoL 2026 — the Interdisciplinary Origin of Life Meeting — is coming soon! 🧬 This year we're heading to Japan for a week of deep, interdisciplinary discussion on how life began. Stay tuned for details 🇯🇵

Really nice discussions at the @norwichmicro.bsky.social last week where I presented a poster on extremophiles in volcanic soils as analogues for early planetary biospheres and I had the chance to co-chair a session. Poster below for anyone interested 👇 #Astrobiology #Geomicrobiology #CMINorwich26

Excited to share our new paper on CODH in astrobiological analogues is finally out! Grateful to my supervisor at @uniofeastanglia.bsky.social and co-authors @unsw.edu.au and to @royalsociety.org for their support. #Research #Astrobiology #FEMSmicrobiology academic.oup.com/femsec/advan...

Venus has lava tubes! That's so cool! Or hot. Venus is a sucky place to live, but is super amazing for science. badastronomy.beehiiv.com/p/venus-has-... 🔭 🧪

Venus has lava tubes!

A long undersurface tunnel discovered in old NASA data

badastronomy.beehiiv.com

Big news! I'll be co-chairing a session and presenting a poster at the @norwichmicro.bsky.social Annual Conference this March. Deadline for abstract submission coming up soon. #CMI2026 #Microbiology #Astrobiology #NRP #Extremophiles share.google/wFUzmSQdayFR...

Centre for Microbial Interactions – Conference 2026

Centre for Microbial Interactions – Annual Conference 2026. Registration is free and the deadline to sign up is Wednesday 25th February 2026.

share.google

I've been confirmed for the @egu.eu General Assembly 2026 in Vienna. It will be an honour to participate in one of the world's largest gatherings of geoscientists. If any of you are heading to the Austria for the conference, it would be good to catch up. #EGU26#Astrobiology#ResearchCommunity

European Geosciences Union (EGU)@egu.eu · last yr.

Don't miss out on all the exciting science and community next year - mark your calendar today for #EGU26! To be held in Vienna and online between 3-8 May 2026! More information available soon: www.egu26.eu

Last Friday I attended the UK Planetary Forum at @ucl-bbk-cps.bsky.social. I presented my recently revised paper on CODH-utilising microbes in volcanic analogues. Thanks to the organisers and speakers for a rewarding experience. The paper is now under review. Stay tuned! 🪐🔬 #Astrobiology

It was nice to present my PhD work, at my department seminar on the "Characterisation of trace gas oxidisers at Mount Etna volcano". Next up, I'm taking the findings from my first publication to the UK Planetary Forum. #PhDresearch #ScienceCommunication #Geomicrobiology #Astrobiology