Before NASA was formed, the first biology experiment aimed at understanding potential extraterrestrial life was conducted by U.S. Air Force scientists at a base in Texas. They sealed lichens, mosses, and microbes inside a set of airtight containers replicating aspects of the frigid, rarified, and arid environment on the Planet Mars. This talk examines the nearly-forgotten military origin of astrobiology—the field dedicated to studying hypothetical life beyond Earth—and how these tiny models sustain a grand vision of human engagement with the cosmos.