Dr. Ruth-Sophie Taubner

Scientific Coordinator

T +43 (316) 4120 - 330
Ruth-Sophie.Taubner(at)oeaw.ac.at
Room E.d.9

Career Summary

2022-Science Coordinator at the Space Research Institute, Austrian Academy of Sciences
2020-2021Postdoctoral Researcher at the Institute for Chemical Technology of Organic Materials, Johannes Kepler University (JKU) Linz, Austria, (Research field: Biotechnology)
2018-2020Postdoctoral Researcher at the Archaea Ecology and Evolution Group, Archaea Biology and Ecogenomics Division, Department of Ecogenomics and Systems Biology, University of Vienna, Austria. (Research fields: Biotechnology and Microbiology)

Academic educaton

2021Bachelor’s degree programme in Physics, University of Vienna, Austria.
2020Teacher Education Diploma programme (for the General Secondary Education; subjects: Physics and Mathematics), University of Vienna, Austria.
2018Doctoral Programme Natural Sciences: Astronomy (with distinction), University of Vienna, Austria (Research field: Astrobiology)
2012Master’s degree programme in Astronomy (with distinction), University of Vienna, Austria.
2009Bachelor’s degree programme in Astronomy (with distinction), University of Vienna, Austria.

Scientific Community Services

Member of several Professional Bodies:

  • AbGradE committee (member since 10/2014, president of AbGradE since 09/2016 (re-elected 10/2019))
  • EANA (member since 07/2013, elected council member since 09/2019, EANA Secretary since 09/2019, Austrian representative since 09/2022)
  • EAI (interim board 02/2018-05/2019, board of trustees 03/2020-06/2020, management committee 05/2019 - 06/2022))
  • Deputy leader of the European Astrobiology Campus (EAI, 05/2019 - 06/2022)
  • Deutsche Astrobiologische Gesellschaft DAbG (German Astrobiology Society) (member since 10/2018)
  • EGU PS ECS (EGU Early Career Scientists in Planetary and Solar System Science) and EPEC (Europlanet Early Career) member since 09/2014)

Reviewer for several Journals in the field of astrobiology, microbiology, and space research:

  • Nature Astronomy (ISSN: 2397-3366)
  • Astrobiology (ISSN: 1531-1074)
  • Life Sciences in Space Research (ISSN: 2214-5524)
  • Research in Microbiology (ISSN: 0923-2508)
  • Life (ISSN: 2075-1729)
  • Origins of Life and Evolution of Biospheres (ISSN: 0169-6149)

Co-editor of the special issue “Open Questions and Next Steps in Astrobiology in Europe - Celebrating 20 Years of EANA”, to be published in the International Journal of Astrobiology (2022)

(Co-)Lecturer of courses related to Astrobiology at the JKU Linz (2021/22) and University of Vienna (2014-2016)

Member of more than 20 (scientific) organizing committees for international conferences, workshops, lecture series, summer/spring schools, etc. (since 2012)

Jury member of “VWA-MINT-Preise der ÖAW” for Physics, Astronomy, and Space Sciences (since 2022)

Jury member of “Jugend Forscht” for Geo- and Space Sciences (Federal Contest, since 2022)

Mentor at the mentoring program “Karriere:MINT” of the University of Applied Sciences Bremerhaven, Germany (2021)

Publications (Top 10)

  • Cavalazzi B., Westall F., Noack L., Taubner R.-S., Milojevic T., Finster K., 2022, Open Questions and Next Steps in Astrobiology in Europe - Celebrating 20 Years of EANA (Editorial), International Journal of Astrobiology (accepted).
  • Nauny P., Cassaro A., Kopacz N., Noack L., Palabikyan H., Pinna S., Price A., Stavrakakis H. A., Taubner R.-S., 2022, Reaching out to early-career astrobiologists: AbGradE's actions and perspectives, International Journal of Astrobiology; doi:10.1017/S1473550422000040.
  • Jebbar M., Hickman-Lewis K., Cavalazzi B., Taubner R.-S., Rittmann S. K.-M. R., Antunes A., 2020, Microbial Diversity and Biosignatures: An Icy Moons Perspective, Space Science Reviews 216, 10; doi:10.1007/s11214-019-0620-z.
  • Taubner R.-S., Olsson-Francis K., Vance S. D., Ramkissoon N. K., Postberg F., de Vera J.-P., Antunes A., Camprubi Casas E., Sekine Y., Noack L., Barge L., Goodman J., Jebbar M., Journaux B., Karatekin Ö., Klenner F., Rabbow E., Rettberg P., Rückriemen-Bez T., Saur J., Shibuya T., Soderlund K. M., 2020, Experimental and Simulation Efforts in the Astrobiological Exploration of Exooceans, Space Science Reviews 216, 9; doi:10.1007/s11214-020-0635-5.
  • Taubner R.-S. & Baumann L. M. F., Bauersachs T., Clifford E. L., Mähnert B., Reischl B., Seifert R., Peckmann J., Rittmann S. K.-M. R., Birgel D., 2019, Membrane Lipid Composition and Amino Acid Excretion Patterns of Methanothermococcus okinawensis Grown in the Presence of Inhibitors Detected in the Enceladian Plume, Life 9(4), 85; doi:10.3390/life9040085.
  • Baumann L. M. F. & Taubner R.-S., Bauersachs T., Steiner M., Schleper C., Peckmann J., Rittmann S. K.-M. R., Birgel D., 2018, Intact polar lipid and core lipid inventory of the hydrothermal vent methanogens Methanocaldococcus villosus and Methanothermococcus okinawensis, Organic Geochemistry 126, 33-42; doi:10.1016/j.orggeochem.2018.10.006.
  • Taubner R.-S., Pappenreiter P., Zwicker J., Smrzka D., Pruckner C., Kolar P., Bernacchi S., Seifert A. H., Krajete A., Bach W., Peckmann J., Paulik C., Firneis M. G., Schleper C., Rittmann S K.-M. R., 2018, Biological methane production under putative Enceladus-like conditions, Nature Communications 9, 748; doi:10.1038/s41467-018-02876-y.
  • Taubner R.-S., Leitner J. J., Firneis M. G., Hitzenberger R., 2016, Modelling the Interior Structure of Enceladus Based on the 2014’s Cassini Gravity Data; Origins of Life and Evolution of Biospheres 46, 283-288; doi:10.1007/s11084-015-9475-9.
  • Taubner R.-S. & Rittmann S. K.-M. R., 2016, Method for Indirect Quantification of CH4 Production via H2O Production Using Hydrogenotrophic Methanogens; Frontiers in Microbiology 7, 532; doi:10.3389/fmicb.2016.00532.
  • Taubner R.-S., Schleper C., Firneis M. G., Rittmann S. K.-M. R., 2015, Assessing the Ecophysiology of Methanogens in the Context of Recent Astrobiological and Planetological Studies, Life 5, 1652-1686; doi:10.3390/life5041652.

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