Students Contest "Space Factor"
Since 2011, the EANA Students Contest "Space Factor" has been organized during the annual EANA Astrobiology Conference by Dr. Ralf Moeller, Institute of Aerospace Medicine, DLR. Since 2020, Marta Cortesão, DLR, continues to organize the contest, as one of several EANA education and support activities for young scientists in Astrobiology.At each EANA conference, a session is dedicated solely to the EANA students contest, where early-career scientists (PhD students or Post-Docs) present their research to all other participants of the conference, being evaluated by five different astrobiology experts.
Poster Awards
It is a tradition of EANA to award prizes for the best posters presented by students and young scientists at the annual workshops. A distinguished team of astrobiologists evaluates the posters based the scientific and presentation quality.- 2021 Virtual Contests

2021 Space Factor Students Contest
1st prize Sebastian Victor Gfellner et al. Introducing the FORAminifera Rocket EXperiment (FORAREX) | |
2nd prize Bárbara Soares et al. Composition of terrestrial planets orbiting M dwarfs | |
3rd prize Marina Fernandez et al. Interstellar phosphorus chemistry as a complex system: a theoretical approach to the formation of the simplest building blocks of life | |
4th prize Hector Palomeque et al. Ignicoccus hospitalis – understanding its extraordinary radiation tolerance and an unsolved archaeal repair system |
2021 Poster Awards
List of awarded posters (random order):- Ophelia Gunn and Charles Cockell
Could Fluid Inclusions in Polar Ice Provide a Sanctuary for Martian Microorganisms? - Eduardo J. Cueto Diaz et al.
CO2 adsorption capacities in amine-functionalized microporous silica nanoparticles - Víctor M. Rivilla et al.
Discovery in space of ethanolamine, the simplest phospholipid head group
- Vera Palma et al.
Assessment of lipid biomarkers from Mars analogue subsurface environments - Caroline Brachmann et al.
Modelling the composition of volcanic gases on young terrestrial planets in the C-H-O-N-S system - Bernardo Barosa et al.
At the dawn of metabolism- How Aquificae can shed light into the evolution of carbon fixation and hydrogen oxidation
EANA 20th Anniversary Presentation Award
- Annemiek C. Waajen et al.
How the presence of meteorites could have shaped microbial communities on early Earth - Kristina Beblo-Vranesevic et al.
From Mars analogue environments to space: ground data evaluation of the survivability of Buttiauxella sp. MASE-IM-9 and Salinisphaera shabanensis - Lena Noack and Caroline Brachmann
Can plate tectonics lead to observational traces in (exo-)planetary atmospheres?
- 2020 Virtual Contests

2020 Space Factor Students Contest
1st prize Bea Baharier, Julia Semprich, Karen Olsson-Francis, Jake R. Crandall, Justin Filiberto, Sally L. Potter-McIntyre, Scott Perl, and Susanne P.Schwenzer From the San Rafael Swell to Mars | |
2nd prize Arianna Ricchiuti and Fabio Pagan Communicating Astrobiology: the role of Italian planetariums | |
3rd prize Grace Richards, Victoria Pearson, Geraint Morgan, Manish Patel, and Simon Sheridan Analysis of VOCs from Enceladus' surface ice | |
4th prize Ophelia Gunn and Charles Cockell The Effect of Anions on Brine Evaporite Morphologies and the Implications for Extraterrestrial Habitability |
2020 Poster Awards
List of awarded posters (random order):- E. Mateo-Marti, S. Galvez-Martinez, C. Gil-Lozano, and Maria-Paz Zorzano
Pyrite-induced uv-photocatalytic abiotic nitrogen fixation: implications for early atmospheres and life - Lena Noack
Volcanic outgassing on stagnant-lid planets vs. plate tectonics planets - Marta Cortesao, Katharina Siems, Stella Koch, David J Smith, and Ralf Moeller
MARSBOx: microbes in a box, in a balloon, exposed to Mars-like conditions - Rosa Santomartino, Annemiek Waajen, Wessel de Wit, Ralf Moeller, Petra Rettberg, Felix M. Fuchs, Rob Van Houdt, Ilse Coninx, Natalie Leys, Charles S. Cockell and the BioRock team
Microbe-mineral interaction and biomining on the International Space Station: BioRock and BioAsteroid - A. Dugdale, N. K. Ramkissoon, P. Fawdon, S. M. R. Turner, S. P. Schwenzer, K. Olsson-Francis and V. K. Pearson
Development of Oxia Planum simulant relevant to the ExoMars mission
- 2019 Students Contest
1st prize Stella Koch Addressing the fungal contamination - testing antifungal materials and radiation-driven decontamination methods | ![]() |
2nd prize Lora Jovanović Pluto, a distant cousin of the primitive Earth? | ![]() |
3rd prize Barnabé Cherville Optimization of the LAb-CosmOrbitrap experiment negative ion mode | ![]() |
- 2019 Poster Awards
The publishers Springer and Cambridge University Press/International Journal of Astrobiology donated the book prizes for the awardees. The winners were awarded by EANA's President Barbara Cavalazzi and the poster contest organizer Lena Noack during the closing session of EANA 2019.
- Siveen Thlaijeh
Application of two-step laser mass spectrometry to the characterization of fossil organic matter and prospects for Exobiology - Alex B. Price
Microbial nitrate-dependent Fe(II) oxidation: mechanisms and astrobiological significance - Giovanni Poggiali
OSIRIS-REx sample return space mission exploring primitive carbonaceous asteroid Bennu: Spectroscopy of laboratory analogs to understand data from an astrobiology-relevant target - Russell Deitrick
THOR: A Fast and Flexible 3D GCM for the Study of Exoplanets - Antonín Knížek
Formation of (per)chlorates on Mars - Paola Modica
Amino acids from photo- and thermo-processing of extraterrestrial ices: a possible source for further prebiotic chemistry - Marta Cortesão
Effect of simulated microgravity on the filamentous fungus Aspergillus niger
- 2018 Students Contest
All participants of the 2018 "Space Factor" students contest together with the EANA president Frances Westall (left) and student contest main organizer Ralf Möller (right) and the winner of the Kate Rubins - Space Microbiology Award.
Peter M. Higgins and Charles Cockell
A New Model to Estimate Energy Flow and Biomass in Terrestrial and Extraterrestrial Environments
2nd prize
Marta Cortesao et al.
Fungi in space: Implications for astronaut health and planetary protection
3rd prize
Maria Cavallius et al.
Water Vapour in the Beta Pictoris Debris Disk
4th prize
Mariano Battistuzzi et al.
An experimental setup to study by remote sensing analyses cyanobacteria growth and photosynthetic performances under non-terrestrial simulated environments
5th prize
Arjen Boosman et al.
UV-induced methane and volatile organic carbon emission from the Murchison carbonaceous chondrite
In addition, two new prizes were awarded for early-career researcher presentations. The Kate Rubins - Space Microbiology Award for Young Researchers was awarded to Katharina Siems.
The winners of the new "Horneck-Brack-Award" donated by Frances Westall (2nd from left) and Jean-Pierre de Vera (right on the left picture). The winners are from left to right: Tim Lichtenberg, Dennis Höning and Nozair Khawaja (right picture).
1st prize
Nozair Khawaja et al.
Complex macromolecular organic material from the subsurface ocean of Enceladus
2nd prize
Tim Lichtenberg et al.
Gradual desiccation of rocky protoplanets from aluminum-26 heating
3rd prize
Dennis Höning et al.
Long-term water and carbon cycles and habitability of terrestrial planets
- 2018 Poster Awards
The publisher Springer and the International Journal of Astrobiology / Cambridge University Press donated a book prize for all awardees. The winners were awarded by EANA`s President Frances Westall and the poster contest organizer Lena Noack during the closing session of EANA 2018.
List of awarded posters (random order):
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- 2017 Students Contest
1st prize
Alex Price, The Open University, Milton Keynes, UK Autotrophy and biomineralisation of nitrate-dependent iron oxidisers on Mars-relevant mineral substrate |
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2nd prize
Diana Boy, Leibniz Universität Hannover, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Hannover, Germany Abundance of radiation-resistant bacteria along an aridity gradient in the Atacama Desert -- Are radiation- and desiccation resistance connected from the habitat perspective? |
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3rd prize Cyprien Verseux, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy Cyanobacteria as a substrate for heterotrophs -- Implications for biological life-support systems on Mars |
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From left to right: Isabell Wolf (Poster award), Diana Boy (2nd prize students contest), Theresa Backhaus (Poster award), Cyprien Verseux (3rd prize students contest), Philippe Nauny (Poster award), Mayvis Musariri (Sohan Jheeta award), Lara Maldanis (Sohan Jheeta award), Uyama Taichi (Poster award), Alex Price (1st prize students contest).
- 2017 Poster Awards
The publishers Springer and Cambridge University Press donated a book prize for all four awardees. The winners were awarded by EANA`s Vice-President Nils Holm during the closing session of EANA 17.
List of awarded posters in alphabetical order:
- Isabell Wolf, University of Hohenheim
co-authored by H. L. Pleyer, H. Strasdeit, S. Fox
Laboratory Simulation of the Thermal Racemization of L-Alanine in Tide Pools of Primordial Volcanic Islands - Theresa Backhaus, Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf
co-authored by S. Ott
Primary results of the analysis of the lichen Buellia frigida after 1.5 years of space exposure during the BIOMEX project - Uyama Taichi, University of Tokyo
co-authored by Hashimoto Jun, Kuzuhara Masayuki, Tamura Motohide, D. Brandt Timothy, Tanigawa Takayuki, Aoyama Yuhiko
Search for Exoplanet around Young Stellar Objects - Philippe Nauny, University of Glasgow
co-authored by K. Simutis, J. Nainys, L. Mazutis, M. R. Lee, J. L. Toney, V. R. Phoenix
Dry riverbed in the Atacama desert: a depth profile analysis for biosignatures
- 2016 Students Contest
From left to right: EANA president Frances Westall, students contest winners Felix M. Fuchs, Camilla Calabrese und Hannes L. Pleyer, together with students contest organizer Ralf Möller
1st prize Camilla Calabrese, Università di Bologna, Dipartimento di Chimica "G. Ciamician", Italy High Resolution Millimeter Wave Absorption Spectroscopy: from the laboratory data to the astronomical surveys |
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2nd prize Felix Matthias Fuchs, German Aerospace Center (DLR e.V.), Institute of Aerospace Medicine, Radiation Biology Department, Space Microbiology Research Group, Germany Floating in space: Influence of simulated microgravity on Bacillus subtilis biofilm formation - An electron microscopic study for whole biofilm analysis |
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3rd prize Hannes L. Pleyer, University of Hohenheim, Institute of Chemistry, Department of Bioinorganic Chemistry, Germany Metalation of a Model Porphyrin in Simulated Primordial Tide Pools: Possible Prebiotic Formation of Porphyrin‐Type Cofactors |
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- 2016 Poster Awards
The publisher Springer donated a book prize for all seven awardees. The winners were awarded by EANA`s President Frances Westall during the closing session of EANA 16.
From left to right: Marta Cortesao, Avinash Dass, EANA president Frances Westall, Marc-Nicolas Rentinck, Greta Lamers and Frederic Foucher
List of awarded posters in alphabetical order:
- Marta Cortesao, co-authored by Ralf Möller
Space Vacuum: The Spores’ Forgotten Menace? - Avinash Vicholous Dass, co-authored by Hickman-Lewis Keyron, Brack André, Kee Terence, Westall Frances
Stochastic prebiotic chemistry within realistic geological systems - Frederic Foucher, co-authored by Nicolas Bost, Sylvain Janiec, Frances Westall, Pascal Perron, Aicha Fonte,
Nicole Le Breton, Jianyu Li, Thomas Platel, Michel Tagger, Michel Viso, Pascale Chazalnoel, Frederic Courtade, Michel Villenave
LithoSpace: an automated system for in situ petrographic thin section preparation on Mars - Pauli Laine
Detecting biomarkers by means of teraherz remote sensing - Greta Lamers, co-authored by Stefan Leuko, Petra Rettberg
Repair of polychromatic radiation induced DNA damage in the archeon Halobacterium salinarum NRC-1 - Marc-Nicolas Rentinck, co-authored by Alessandro Airo
Bioflumology: Cyanobacterial biomat morphologies under different fluid flow conditions - Jennifer Wadsworth, co-authored by Charles S. Cockell, Ralf Möller
The double-edged sword of Iron oxides: Their protective and destructive effects on life on the Early Earth and present-day Mars
- 2015 Students Contest
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1st and 3rd prize winners of the contest with the jury members and organizer of the student contest: Franco Ferrari, Jean-Pierre de Vera, Iulia Myrgorodska, Maximilian Mora, André Brack, José Eduardo González-Pastor, Frances Westall and Ralf Möller. |
1st prize Iuliia Myrgorodska, University of Nice Sophia Antipolis, France Asymmetric photolysis of chiral molecules of prebiotic importance at synchrotron SOLEIL |
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2nd prize Ruth-Sophie Taubner, Research Platform ExoLife, University of Vienna, Austria A new method for quantification of methane production of hydrogenotrophic methanogens |
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3rd prize Maximilian Mora, Center for medical research, Graz, Austria The swimming behaviour of hyperthermophiles – or: how to survive potential early Earth conditions |
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- 2015 Poster Awards
The publishers Springer and Cambridge University Press donated a book prize for all seven awardees. The winners were awarded by EANA`s President Frances Westall and Honorary President Gerda Horneck during the closing session of EANA 15.
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Organizers, awardees and jury members of the poster award: Gerda Horneck, Frances Westall, Iulia Myrgorodska, Simone Martini, Carlos Banchon, Lena Noack, Ralf Möller (for Marina Raguse), Krzysztof Rychert, Kai Finster, Felix Matthias Fuchs, Harry Lehto and Daniela Billi. |
List of awarded posters in alphabetical order:
- Iulia Myrgorodska, University of Nice Sophia Antipolis, France,
co-authored by Cornelia Meinert, Pierre de Marcellus, Louis le Sergeant d’Hendecourt, Laurent Nahon and Uwe J. Meierhenrich
Asymmetric photolysis of chiral molecules of prebiotic importance at synchrotron SOLEIL - Carlos Banchon, Microbial Systems Ecology, Department of microbiology, TU München, Freising, Germany / DLR, Köln, Germany,
co-authored by Stefan Leuko, Petra Rettberg and Natuschka Lee
The potential use of halophiles for environmental management on and beyond Earth - Felix Matthias Fuchs, German Aerospace Center, Institute of Aerospace Medicine, Radiation Biology Department, Cologne, Germany,
co-authored by Petra Rettberg, Joerg Stuelke, Delma Childers, Charles Cockell, Kai Finster, Ruth Hemmersbach and Ralf Moeller
“Slime but fine” -- New insights about Bacillus subtilis biofilm formation and robustness under simulated space conditions - Simone Martini, University of Florence, Italy / Univerily of Leiden, Leiden Observatory, the Netherlands,
co-authored by E.P.Monaghan and P.Ehrenfreund
Biology of Mars Soil Analogues, Biomolecules preservation and their relationship with life - Lena Noack, Department of Reference Systems and Planetology, Royal Observatory of Belgium, Belgium,
co-authored by Dennis Höning, Attilio Rivoldini, Clemens Heistracher, Nastasia Zimov, H. Lammer, Tim Van Hoolst and Jan Hendrik Bredehöft
Water-rich planets: How habitable is a water layer deeper than on Earth? - Marina Raguse, German Aerospace Center (DLR), Institute of Aerospace Medicine, Radiation Biology Department, Cologne, Germany,
co-authored by M. Fiebrandt, K. Stapelmann, P. Eaton, F. Narberhaus, P. Awakowiczand R. Moeller
Plasma sterilization as an innovative tool for the next generation of planetary protection - Krzysztof Rychert, Department of Ecology, Pomeranian University in Słupsk, Poland,
co-authored by Beata Mendrzejewska and Anna Kiestrzyń
Dynamics of oxygen consumption during formation of the anoxic zone
- 2014 Students Contest

All participants and judges of the 2014 Students Contest
From left to rigth: Daniela Billi, Giuseppe Gallo, Kirsi Lehto, Claudia Hahn, Rocco L. Mancinelli, Frances Westall, Bo Byloos, Katja Nagler (2nd prize), Sherry L. Cady, Alexandra Perras (1st prize), Charles S. Cockell, Corinna Panitz, Dagmar Koschnitzki (3rd prize), Ralf Moeller, Michaela Musilova, Claudia Pacelli (Image by Natasha Nicholson).
1st prize
Alexandra Perras, Department of Internal Medicine, Medical University of Graz, Austria
Grappling hooks: The life style and ultrastructure of the SM1 Euryarchaeon which thrives in a Mars analogue site
2nd prize
Katja Nagler, Institute of Aerospace Medicine, German Aerospace Center, Germany
Analysis of Bacillus subtilis spore germination in high-salinity environments
3rd prize
Dagmar Koschnitzki, Institute of Aerospace Medicine, German Aerospace Center, Germany
Ignicoccus hospitalis shows high radiation tolerance although never exposed to it in its natural habitat
Find more information on http://www.dlr.de/me/en/desktopdefault.aspx/tabid-1752/2384_read-41310.
- 2014 Poster Awards
Thanks to the generosity of the publishers Springer and Cambridge University Press, each awardee received a recent book topical to astrobiology in addition to the poster prize document. The winners were awarded by EANA`s President Frances Westall and Honorary President Gerda Horneck during the closing session of EANA 14.
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Picture of the winners of the poster award1, subsidiary colleagues2 and organizers3 of the 2014 EANA
poster awards. From left to right: Jean-Pierre de Vera2 (for awardee Dennis Höning1), Gerda Horneck3, Frances Westall3, Casey Bryce1, Maximilian Mora1, Tetyana Milojevic1, Bo Byloos1and Dominic Papineau2 (for awardee Matthew S. Dodd1). Image courtesy of Natasha Nicholson. |
List of awarded posters in alphabetical order:
- Casey Bryce, UK Centre for Astrobiology, School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK,
co-authored by Sarah Martin, Thierry Le Bihan, Timothy Bush, Bryan Spears, Alanna Moore, Jesse Harrison, Natalie Leys, Bo Byloos and Charles Cockell
Rock geochemistry drives stress and starvation responses in the bacterial proteome - Bo Byloos, Molecular and Cellular Biology, Belgian Nuclear Research Center SCK-CEN, Mol, Belgium,
co-authored by Rob Van Houdt, Nico Boon and Natalie Leys
Potential of Cupriavidus metallidurans CH34 for biomining from lunar-like basalt by determining the molecular mechanisms behind microbe-mineral interactions - Matthew S. Dodd, London Centre for Nanotechnology and Department of Earth Sciences, University College London, UK,
co-authored by Dominic Papineau
Biosignatures of early life in >3.8Ga Banded Iron Formations? - Dennis Höning, German Aerospace Center (DLR), Institute of Planetary Research, Berlin, Germany,
co-authored by T. Spohn
A Thermal Evolution Model of the Earth Including the Biosphere, Continental Growth and Mantle Hydration
- Maximilian Mora, University of Graz, Austria,
co-authored by Daniel Eckl, Michael Mauermeier and Christine Moissl-Eichinger
ARBEX - Archaeal and bacterial extremophiles onboard the International Space Station ISS - Tetyana Milojevic, Archaea Biology and Ecogenomics Division, and Department of Biophysical Chemistry, University of Vienna, Austria,
co-authored by Ziga Zebec, Simon Rittmann, Melina Kerou and Christa Schleper
Iron-oxidising thermoacidophilic archaeon Metallosphaera sedula: insights into astrobiological application
- EANA 2013 Students Contest
![]() All participants and judges of the 2013 Students Contest |
1st prize Jan Frösler The influence of extracellular polymeric substances on the tolerance of Deinococcus geothermalis to the environmental conditions of space and Mars 2nd prize Paloma Serrano Methanogenic archaea from Siberian permafrost: response to simulated Martian conditions and biosignature description 3rd prize Yuko Kawaguchi Microbes in clay micro-particles collided with ultralow density silica aerogel at 4km/s can be detected by fluorescence imaging |
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- EANA 2012 Students Contest
The EANA 2012 student contest was generously supported with several prizes (e.g. online journal subscription, Svante Arrhenius Astrobiology Award and prize money) by the Astrobiology Journal (Mary Ann Liebert, Inc.), DLR’s Radiation Biology Department and the Helmholtz Space Life Sciences Research School (SpaceLife), which is gratefully acknowledged here.
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Picture of the participants1, reviewers2 and organizer3 of the 2012 EANA students contest "The Space Factor". From left to right: Ralf Möller3, Nils G. Holm2, Alfonso Delgado Bonal1, Kai Finster2, Ebbe Norskov Bak1, Siddharth Hegde1, Stefanie Lutz1, Mickael Baqué1, Petra Schwendner1, Natalia B. Gontareva2 Missing on the picture are: Oleg Gusev3, Helmut Lammer2, Jan Marie Andersen1, Aristodimos Vasileiadis1, Arkadii V. Tarasevych1, Gayathri Murukesan1). Image courtesy of Marko Wassmann. |
1st prize Jan Marie Andersen (Københavns Universitet, Niels Bohr Institute, Centre for Star and Planet Formation, Copenhagen, Denmark / NSF Graduate Research Fellow at Boston University Astronomy Department, Boston, USA) Talk and poster: M dwarfs as planet hosts: consequences of stellar activity on exoplanet detection |
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2nd prize Petra Schwendner (Universität Regensburg, Regensburg, Germany / DLR Cologne, Germany) Talk and poster: Monitoring of the microbial community during simulated flight to Mars |
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3rd prize Mickael Baqué (University of Rome "Tor Vergata", Rome, Italy) Talk and poster: BIOMEX-Desert Cyanobacteria: ground simulations of the EXPOSE-R2 mission |
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- EANA 2012 Poster Awards
- Siddharth Hegde for his poster "Colors of extreme exo-Earths environments"
- Samuel Regandell for "Spectral synthesis for protoplanetary disk models"
- Franz Leißing for "The thermal stability of tetrapyrrols: exploring the limits"
- Veronika Grosz for "Continuous, in situ measurement of the altitude-dependent change of UV radiation and its effects on biological systems"
- Lauri Nikkanen for "Origin of cellular life: The earliest genome was of eukaryotic type?"
- Jun Kawai for "Self-assembly of Titan tholins in environments simulating Titan liquidospheres andits implication to formation of primitive membrane in Titan"
- Engy Ahmed for "Soil Microorganisms and Mineral Weathering: Mechanics of Biotite Dissolution"
- Joachim Meeßen for "Comparative studies on the morphological-anatomical, chemical, and physiological properties of four space-relevant lichen species to assess their high potential in resisting extreme environmental conditions"
- EANA 2011 Students Contest
![]() Award ceremony 2011 |
![]() All participants 2011 |
1st prize Anja Bauermeister (a PhD student from the University of Duisburg/Essen, Biofilm Centre, Essen, Germany and the German Aerospace Center (DLR), Insititue of Aerospace Medicine, Radiation Biology, Cologne, Germany) gave the Best Young Researcher presentation, entitled Could acidophilic iron-sulfur bacteria be suitable model organisms for Mars? |
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2nd prize Francisco Javier Sánchez Iñigo, PhD student (from Earth Observation Department, INTA. Ctra. de Ajalvir, Km. 4, Torrejón de Ardoz, 28850 Madrid, Spain) Presentation title: Resistance of Rhizocarpon geographicum to UV-B and UV-C radiation in a hydrated- and desiccated state |
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3rd prize Aditya Chopra, PhD student (from The Australian National University, Planetary Science Institute, Canberra, Australia) Presentation title: What do the elemental abundances tell us about the universality of life? |
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- EANA 2011 Poster Awards
- Ana-Catalina Plesa for her poster "Thermo-chemical evolution and the atmospheric evolution of terrestrial planets"
- Aditya Chopra for his posters "What do the elemental abundances tell us about universality of life?" and "Elemental insights into the site of the origin and early evolution of life on Earth"
- Lena Noack for her poster "Plate tectonics on Earth-like planets: Implications for habitability"
- Shin-ichi Yokobori for his poster "Capture and space exposure experiments of microorganisms on the ISS orbit proposed in "TANPOPO" mission"
- Gopal Pathak for his poster "A novel DNA repair enzyme from Acinetobacter sp. Ver3 isolated from an extreme environment"