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Summer School “Icy Bodies and Life”
1-8 August 2026
Tartu, Estonia

The workshop Icy Bodies and Life (Tartu, Estonia 1-8 August 2026) is going to provide the participant with comprehensive knowledge of icy bodies in the Solar System, from their formation in planetary systems to their role as potential habitats for life. This school is going to connect planetary science, astrochemistry, astrobiology, and space technology to examine how icy bodies like moons, comets, and asteroids form, evolve, and interact. During the school we will be carrying out asteroid observations with local telescopes.

The school focuses mostly on the physical and chemical properties of icy environments, like icy satellites such as Europa, Ganymede, and Enceladus, and small bodies like comets and asteroids. Special emphasis is placed on chemical processes, such as those occurring in Titan’s atmosphere, and on how these processes may contribute to the formation of complex organic molecules. Participants are also thought to assess the habitability of icy worlds by drawing connections to the extreme environment analogues on Earth, such as deep-sea ecosystems and subglacial lakes. Throughout the lectures, participants also learn to examine the broader significance of icy bodies in the context of planetary evolution and the origin of life, including their potential role in delivering water and organic material to early Earth. Lastly, the school also highlights the role of space missions, covering past, ongoing, and future missions to icy bodies.

The school program is designed to equip participants with the knowledge and interdisciplinary perspective needed to address fundamental questions about the Solar System and the possibility of life on icy bodies.