The Drake Equation is an equation used to determine the probability of extraterrestrial civilizations that can communicate through space. This equation was developed primarily through the effort of a man named Frank D. Drake and was revealed at a Search for ExtraTerrestrial Intelligence (SETI) conference in 1961. The information used in the equation is not precisely known, and results vary by millions.
Fermi, the scientist known for his work in the field of atoms, is the famous progenitor of what is now called the Fermi Paradox. The Fermi Paradox is the paradox of why habitable planets are so many, yet no signs of life have ever been found or displayed themselves.
For finding life like the life on earth, scientists use six points when evaluating a planet. These areas are pressure, oxygen, acidity, salinity, temperature and oxygen levels. Scientists have decided that primitive life can survive a broader range of environments than advanced life.
People can specialize in searching for life on other planets and must be experts in such things as biology, the geological sciences, astronomy and ethics. This specialization is called exobiology or astrobiology. A person specializes in astrobiology by first entering one field of study, then progressing to that part of their chosen field which relates to outer space.
The Search for Extraterrestrial Life, also known as SETI, is an institute that finds radio and visible light occurrences in space and seeks to analyze them for patterns. They conduct searches for these signals in all directions but also search for signals from close stars.
Meteorites called carboniferous chondrites have fallen to earth at various points in history. These meteorites have very small amounts of organic compounds in them such as amino acids. Famous carboniferous chondrites meteorites found in more recent times include the 1969 Murchison meteorite and the 1984 Allan Hills meteorite.