Title: Purple is the new green – The colors of life as a tool to search for life in the cosmos

Biopigments, ubiquitous in organisms across the tree of life, color Earth’s landscapes and offer protection against various environmental challenges, including radiation, temperature fluctuations, resource scarcity, and aridity—the prevalent conditions in various earthly and extraterrestrial locations. They may serve as universal indicators of life, with unique spectral features reflecting different conditions. Current models focus on chlorophyll-covered planets, overlooking the diversity of Earth-like landscapes.
To address this, we developed a spectral catalog representing colors of life in varied environments, aiding future telescope designs like the Habitable World Observatory. Our endeavor seeks to break away from the constraints of solely modeling Earth’s carbon copy, acknowledging the diverse environments that Earth-like planets in different solar systems may harbor.
In this exploration, we see the emergence of new colors indicative of life on planets with unique and varied environmental characteristics, where orange, yellow, or even purple could be the new green.

Name: Ligia F Coelho

Lígia has a background in microbiology and a PhD in Bioengineering/Astrobiology from the MIT Portugal Program/Técnico.
Her research at Cornell University started with a Fulbright Schuman for Scholars awarded in 2022 and focuses on the study of biopigments as biosignatures on the surface of exoplanets. Lígia’s interests extend to icy moons, extreme environments, and planetary field analogs.
She also dedicates time to innovation and space biology with payload experiments to send medical devices for women’s health to space.

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