Life Detection Knowledge Base: Taxonomy of Potential Biosignatures

Abstract

The Life Detection Knowledge Base (LDKB) is a community webtool developed to test and evaluate strategies to search for evidence of life beyond Earth, with an emphasis on recognizing potential false-positive and false-negative results. As part of the LDKB framework, we developed a taxonomy of potential biosignatures. The taxonomy brings together a broad array of life-detection strategies into a common and systematic structure that allows for equitable evaluations based on a specific set of criteria, chosen to assess the likelihood of false-positive and false-negative interpretations. The taxonomy is also a tool to organize life-detection strategies in a way that streamlines their infusion into robotic spaceflight missions. This article describes the structure of the taxonomy and its functional qualities. Two accompanying articles detail the overall LDKB framework and the set of criteria used to evaluate potential biosignatures.

Keywords: Astrobiology; Biosignatures; Exobiology; Life detection; Taxonomy.