Splash Biography

EDWARD MOLTER, UC Berkeley grad student studying Astronomy

Major: Astronomy

College/Employer: UC Berkeley

Year of Graduation: G

Brief Biographical Sketch:

I'm an astrophysics grad student with a passion for planetary science. I research the atmospheres of solar system bodies using data from both ground-based telescopes and space probes. I'm a student instructor for a course called Introduction to General Astronomy here at Berkeley, and in college I taught ecology and biology at a summer camp for middle schoolers.

Past Classes

(Clicking a class title will bring you to the course's section of the corresponding course catalog)

S219: The Search for Extraterrestrial Life in Splash Fall 2016 (Nov. 19, 2016)

The question "Are we alone?" has vexed philosophers and scientists alike since antiquity. Modern advances in biology, engineering, and astronomy have revolutionized our understanding of what aliens might look like and the technology available to find them. This class presents a scientist's perspective on extraterrestrial life and how to search for it. Topics include the requirements for life and extremophile life on Earth, the search for microbes in the Solar System, theories of non-water-based life, and attempts to detect signals from intelligent interstellar species.