(Toward) Discovery of Life beyond Earth and its Impact (IAU S387)

The discovery of life beyond Earth, whether elsewhere in the Solar System or on a distant exoplanet, would be one of the biggest scientific discoveries in history, with major ramifications for wider society. This volume reviews the status of the search and the extent of societal preparedness for its impacts.

Thirty years on from the discovery of the first exoplanets, our focus is now turning to the search for signs of possible life on these worlds through the detection of atmospheric biosignatures. In parallel, the search for extraterrestrial intelligence and technosignatures is being revolutionised as the new era of time-domain survey astronomy gets underway. Together with new planetary science missions within the Solar System, the search for life beyond Earth is entering a new data-rich era. But, when the discoveries come, what will they mean and how should they be communicated to the scientific community and wider society in the era of social media and fake news? This volume distils the latest multi-disciplinary perspectives, encompassing the nature of life in a cosmic context, astronomical search methods and interpretative frameworks, as well as insights into the cultural and societal impacts of such a high-profile discovery.