Elected: 2015
Discipline: Physics and Astronomy
Professor Charles Cockell
Professor of Astrobiology, University of Edinburgh
Professor Charles Cockell received his BSc from Bristol University and his doctorate from the University of Oxford before taking up a National Research Council Associateship at the NASA Ames Research Centre. He is Professor of Astrobiology at the University of Edinburgh and Director of the UK Centre for Astrobiology. Charles’ research interests are in the study of life in extreme environments, the limits of life on Earth, the habitability of extra-terrestrial environments and the exploration of space. He has also published papers and books examining the ethics of space exploration and the nature of liberty in the extreme confines of space environments.