Led by Dimitra Atri, Principal Investigator at NYUAD's Space Exploration Laboratory within the Center for Astrophysics and Space Science (CASS), the research challenges the long-standing belief that life needs sunlight or geothermal heat to survive. Instead, it explores how cosmic rays interacting with subsurface water or ice can trigger a process known as radiolysis, splitting water molecules and releasing electrons that some Earth bacteria can use for metabolic energy.
Using advanced simulations, the team assessed how much energy this process could produce on Mars and the icy moons Enceladus and Europa. The results suggest that Enceladus offers the highest potential for this kind of life-supporting chemistry, followed by Mars and then Europa.
"This discovery changes the way we think about where life might exist," Atri said. "Instead of looking only for warm planets with sunlight, we can now consider places that are cold and dark, as long as they have some water beneath the surface and are exposed to cosmic rays. Life might be able to survive in more places than we ever imagined."
The study also introduces a novel concept called the Radiolytic Habitable Zone, which expands the search for life beyond the traditional Goldilocks Zone. Rather than focusing on planets with surface liquid water, this new zone emphasizes subsurface water energized by cosmic radiation - offering a broader framework for astrobiological exploration.
These findings could reshape future space missions, encouraging scientists to investigate underground environments for signs of life powered by cosmic ray chemistry, rather than limiting the search to surface-based biosignatures.
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