PREVIEW. HEADLINE TOPIC: Accidental Discovery of Ionic Liquid and its Implications for Extraterrestrial Life GUEST NAME: Professor Sara Seager GUEST NAME AND TITLE: Professor Sara Seager of MIT, as

PREVIEW.  HEADLINE TOPIC: Accidental Discovery of Ionic Liquid and its Implications for Extraterrestrial Life GUEST NAME: Professor Sara Seager GUEST NAME AND TITLE: Professor Sara Seager of MIT, astrophysicist, planetary scientist, and physicist PREVIEW: Professor Sara Seager details her post-doc Rajna Agarwal's accidental discovery of ionic liquid while simulating Venus's environment. The experiment involved evaporating concentrated sulfuric acid and organic molecules, expecting complete evaporation under low pressure. However, a persistent tiny liquid residue was found, identified as an ionic liquid. This unexpected finding, not water, could profoundly impact the search for organic life beyond Earth or reveal new insights into life on other planets, particularly in Venus's sulfuric acid clouds. Seager will discuss this further on "Hotel Mars" with David Livingston. 1954