FROM THE EDITOR
It turns out our Solar System is a pretty hospitable place. That’s been one of the major narratives of the last decade as probes and rovers have stretched out across space and got to know the planets and moons that surround us. Clearly Earth is something special, but it seems that between the Martian rivers, the lakes on Europa and the seas of Enceladus there are plenty of niches in our cosmic neighbourhood where life could take a foothold. Despite this, it came as a huge shock when, in September, scientists announced that they had found the signature of a chemical, usually produced by living things, floating in the clouds of Venus. Indeed, it was such a surprise, that a paper was put out almost immediately disputing the data. Either…
