UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Zohra Zahir is a doctoral candidate in microbial biogeochemistry at the University of Regina, Saskatchewan, but she sees her future when she looks to the stars. Zahir said she wants to apply her skills to better understanding planets and the creation of life beyond our planet.

Lately, her research is pointing to analogous places on Earth that can guide her future career in astrobiology, which is the study of microorganisms in space or under space conditions. That’s why she jumped at the chance to take the International Geobiology Course (IGC) offered at Penn State and funded by the Agouron Institute and Simons Foundation. It’s directed by Katherine Freeman, Evan Pugh University Professor of Geosciences, and Jennifer Macalady, professor of geosciences.

“Astrobiology requires lots of geobiology knowledge,” Zahir said. “In researching what I wanted to accomplish for my Ph.D., I got excited about how much geobiology and astrobiology are interconnected. In the end, my love for space brought me back to Earth.”

Zahir is one of 17 students pursuing their doctoral degrees who took part in the immersive and interdisciplinary course that explores how microbial life and the Earth have shaped each other. Students conducted research in central Italy and New York’s Fayetteville Green Lake before traveling to Penn State to use the University’s extensive R1-ranked research lab facilities to analyze their findings.

Central Italy’s Frasassi cave system contains microbial life that endures harsh anoxic conditions, similar to potential life on other planets. Same for Green Lake, which researchers think approximates Earth’s anoxic bodies of water that existed up until about 2.5 billion years ago. Course objectives included exploring how life and Earth processes are linked, by studying microbial ecosystems and biosignatures in modern and ancient thermal springs, tracking biological signatures within ancient sediments, learning testing methods in both the lab and the field and writing and understanding research papers.

For Zahir, the highlight of the course was learning how to turn samples into data-driven clues that help paint a larger picture of the environment. She said the faculty encouraged her to look beyond her area of expertise and to take an interdisciplinary approach.

“The main highlight was the people. The professors helped us so much and guided us through the whole course. However, they also pushed us to come out of our comfort zone and learn something completely different from what we research,” Zahir said. “The sites we explored also showed the importance of the research. We visited so many places, and each one of them had a story to tell.”

Anita Alexandra Sanchez, a doctoral candidate studying biogeochemistry at Germany’s Freiberg University of Mining and Technology, is interested in research from an altogether different angle; She said she wants to use hydrological and biogeochemical proxies to improve water quality from mine drainage and other contaminated environments. She wants to further study the role of chemical and biological processes rid polluted waters from metals and other hazards.

She said the course let her explore other disciplines for solutions.

“This course will help me achieve my research and academic goals by connecting me with a larger network of intellectual researchers of whom I feel comfortable reaching out to for collaboration and guidance,” Alexandra Sanchez said. “It also opened my mind to different analyses I can apply to dive deeper into my research.”

Sydney Riemer, a doctoral candidate in Earth and planetary sciences at Yale University, was most interested in learning about the connections between biological and nonbiological processes.

“Thinking about how life and the environment coevolved offered me a new lens with which to think about our planet, its history, what makes it habitable for life, how that habitability can be taken away and how that could translate to the habitability of other worlds,” Riemer said.

She learned new tools for identifying and researching microorganisms that are common in sulfide rich environments. Sulfide-rich environments were widespread in the ocean early in Earth’s history and that’s one of the reasons they’re important to study, Reimer said. She also worked with genomic data alongside geochemical data from the test sites.

“The course introduced me to many new techniques that I hope to incorporate into my research both during my Ph.D. and after,” Riemer said. “The lab rotations at Penn State also gave me the knowledge of what tools can be used for answering an array of questions. But, most importantly, the course allowed me to network with many geobiologists who will be my colleagues and hopefully collaborators throughout my career.”

Freeman said it’s the great students and educators who make the course a blast.

“My colleagues and I are delighted to bring the International Geobiology Course to Penn State,” Freeman said. “This is our second year as hosts of this highly regarded course, which has taught generations of young scholars, many of whom are now scientific leaders in this innovative field. For me, hands down, the best is working with students from all over the world together with our incredibly talented team of instructors.”

The course also included a mini symposium, “Hydrogen Ecology,” that featured leading experts on microbial and geological hydrogen cycles, and included speakers from U.S. and international universities, the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology, the Department of Energy’s Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy and NASA.