exobiology

English

Etymology

From exo- +‎ biology, coined by American molecular biologist (1925 - 2008) Joshua Lederberg.[1]

Pronunciation
  • Audio (US)(file)

Noun

exobiology (usually uncountable, plural exobiologies)

  1. (biology, science fiction) The branch of biology dealing with lifeforms originating a different planet.
    Synonym: xenobiology
    Hypernym: astrobiology
    • 1973, Lyall Watson, Supernature, page ix. 310:
      Biology has lately given rise to a new discipline: exobiology, the study of extraterrestrial life. Ever since 1959, when analysis of a piece of meteor substance showed traces of organic compounds, a controversy has raged as to whether these compounds came into the atmosphere with the meteorite or whether they originate on earth.

Translations

References
  1. “Launching a New Science: Exobiology and the Exploration of Space”, in U.S. National Library of Medicine‎, 2019 April 13 (last accessed): “Lederberg's urgent warnings about interstellar contamination, and his call for the scientific study of life beyond earth's atmosphere—for which he coined the term exobiology—tapped into popular fascination with the dawning of the space age, and brought him international media attention.”

Further reading
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