Astrobiology Science and Technology for Exploring Planets

The objective was to enable the study of astrobiology and to aid the planning of extraterrestrial exploration missions while prioritizing science, technology, and field campaigns.

According to the formal description from NASA, "The ASTEP program sponsors the development of technologies that enable remote searches for, and identification of, life in extreme environments, including planetary surfaces and subsurfaces.

This region simulates proposed missions to explore the vast liquid water ocean that is expected to reside under Jupiter's moon, Europa.

[3] ASTEP promotes the development of new exploration technologies and techniques that can search, identify, and study life in extreme conditions in locations that are difficult to access.

The 2011 projects included:[citation needed] Stromatolite building provides important geological information on the history of microorganisms dating back to over a billion years ago.

In recent years, ASTEP has been researching how these layered fossils could have formed by studying modern day microbial mats, which leave stromatolite similar to their ancestors.

[1] As of 2009, the scientists have successfully completed the first phase of the three-year mission, which was to probe the region, install scientific instruments, and determine the future testing sites.

[3] In order to raise awareness about the research being conducted under the auspices of ASTEP, scientists have been increasingly using blogs as a way to convey information about their studies, typically when they are performing science at a remote location on a terrestrial field test.