Cornell astronomer stars in IMAX film, 'The Search for Life in Space'

Lisa Kaltenegger, associate professor of astronomy and director of Cornell’s Carl Sagan Institute, is featured in the new IMAX film, “The Search for Life in Space,” now released internationally.

“The filming was a fun adventure,” says Kaltenegger. “Instead of doing interviews, I got to crawl through lava caves, fly in door-less helicopters and explore Hawaii for extreme forms of life.”

The film examines the tremendous strides that have been made in our search for life beyond Earth, and how scientists such as Kaltenegger now use our own planet and its wide range of species as a Rosetta stone to detect signs of life on exoplanets.

Kaltenegger notes that the Voyager spacecraft were launched 40 years ago carrying the message of humankind into space, curated by a team led by Cornell's astronomer Carl Sagan. “We now know that there are thousands of other worlds out there and the next step, to scout them for signs of life, is one of the big science adventures in humankind's history of exploration,” she says.

Currently showing the film are:

The Fernbank Museum of Natural History, Atlanta, GA

Pacific Science Center, Seattle, WA

IMAX Theatre Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia

Tycho Brahe Planetarium, Copenhagen, Denmark   

National Museum of Natural Science, Taichung, Taiwan

IMAX Victoria, Victoria, Canada (opening Sept. 22)