Re: More Methane on Mars

From: Neil Halelamien (neuronexmachina_at_gmail.com)
Date: 11/14/04 

Date: 13 Nov 2004 22:19:13 -0800

> Absolutely. If it looks as though there
really might be life there, lets hope
they discard the whole harebrained idea
of manned missions until we can study
what is there _without_ contaminating it.

I like the response to this in the Mars Society's FAQ:

Q: What are the risks of contaminating Mars with Earth life forms, or
vice versa?
A: Actually, it is arguable that this has already been happening for
billions of years. During his study of known Martian meteorite
ALH84001, Cal Tech's Joseph Kirschvink showed that large parts of the
rock were never heated above 40C (104F), proving the theory of
University of Arizona researcher Jay Melosh that it is possible for
rocks to be ejected from one planet's surface and land on another's
surface without being excessively heated. More importantly, this
discovery showed that not all rocks ejected from either Mars or Earth
are sterilized -- a fact that, when combined with the known ability of
microorganisms to remain alive in a dormant state for millions of
years, means that Earth life has probably already traveled to Mars, and
if life ever existed on Mars, it has already traveled to Earth.

Relevant Pages

  • CMU Postdoctoral Study Rocks With Mars Similarities
    ... CMU POSTDOCTORAL STUDY "ROCKS" WITH MARS SIMILARITIES ... Microscopic life in lakes of southwestern Australia may provide keys to ...
    (sci.space.news)
  • Old rocks the key to life on Mars
    ... the oldest rocks on the planet if it wants to find evidence of past life. ... "You have to have a site very low on Mars for the parachutes to work." ... What is fascinating is that these hydrated minerals - so called because they ...
    (sci.geo.geology)
  • Article: Complex ecosystems arrived early
    ... Diversity of oldest fossils could mean extraterrestrial life is more likely. ... Researchers studying rock formations shaped by the earliest life on Earth ... The rocks bear stippled, wavy markings that many claim are the hallmarks of ... Life on Mars ...
    (sci.bio.evolution)
  • Re: AFAL travel is only 300 years away
    ... Humans walked on the moon before I was born. ... people walking on Mars five years after the moon. ... picking up some rocks and then coming home. ... remote chance that life exists or existed on Mars, ...
    (rec.arts.sf.written)
  • Re: So, what kind of life should we plant on Mars?
    ... Microbial life dates from at least 3.5 billion years ago on ... there's no solid evidence of life on Mars. ... no - i think it would be singularily odd if what we found was bacterial ... See, the problem is that as things stand, such seeding is useless - earth life just ...
    (sci.geo.geology)