Inaugural Lecture: Rethinking the boundaries of astrobiology

In her inaugural lecture, Professor Karen Olsson-Francis will explore her work relating to the survivability of microorganisms and how her interdisciplinary approach has led her to rethink the boundaries of astrobiology.

Karen is Professor in Geomicrobiology, in the School of Environment, Earth and Ecosystem Sciences. She is the Director of AstrobiologyOU, a group that brings together over 60 scientists, social scientists, governance experts and educators to create the largest interdisciplinary astrobiology group in Europe. Since 2019, Karen and AstrobiologyOU have secured over £10m of funding, including £6.7m from Research England as part of their Expanding Excellence in England scheme. Her background is in microbiology with a PhD in microbial physiology of extremophilic microorganisms from the University of Otago in New Zealand.