When searching for life beyond Earth, scientists are haunted by a single fear: announcing a discovery that isn’t really there. Yet, by exclusively focusing our scrutiny on avoiding these illusions, have we blinded ourselves to reality? This brings us to a critical, yet neglected, challenge in astrobiology: the risk of the false negative – in other words, concluding that life is absent when it may, in fact, be present. History has indeed taught us that absence of evidence is not evidence of absence. The fundamental question now facing space exploration is no longer just how to find life, but rather: how do we ensure we haven’t already missed it? It is precisely this question that an ISSI Working Group, led by Inge Loes ten Kate, Lena Noack, and Emmanuelle Javaux, set out to address.
As ISSI enters a new chapter, we are delighted to welcome Prof. Elena Sabbi to the ISSI Directorate. Bringing with her a wealth of experience in astrophysics, scientific leadership, and international collaboration, she now joins ISSI at a time of continued growth and international engagement.
Over the course of her career, Elena has held key leadership roles at major facilities, including the Space Telescope Science Institute, where she contributed to both the Hubble Space Telescope and the James Webb Space Telescope, and most recently as Chief Scientist of the International Gemini Observatory.
To help the ISSI community get to know her a little better, we sat down with Elena for a conversation about her scientific journey, her ambitions for ISSI, and a few of the interests and experiences that have shaped her along the way.
A few days ago, there was a new team at ISSI. With 21 members, it was a rather large one — yet everything felt familiar. There was excitement about being away from everyday routines, animated conversations over free mugs and stickers, and a buzz of anticipation in the air. But this time, there was a first: ISSI was welcoming a local class of ten-year-olds, attending the fourth year of Swiss primary school.
