It is only recently that advances in chemistry, physics, and biology and in their application to space and the space sciences, have provided scientists with the tools to make accurate and well-informed predictions about the possibility of life on other planets. In this book, the authors summarize and present the scientific search for life in the universe, and the current level of scientific understanding of how life begins, grows, and becomes intelligent in our Solar System and beyond. This engaging book promises to appeal not only to the general reader but to scientists as well, many of whom strive to acquire an informed perspective on the search for extraterrestrial life in fields not their own.