NASA might have infected Mars.

Posted by Les on Monday, July 18, 2005 at 10:20 PM. Read 796 times. Tags:
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Remember awhile back when I pondered if there was any chance that in our search of other planets for signs of life past or present that we might end up accidentally transporting it there ourselves? Well according to one NASA scientist that might have actually happened:

The US space agency believes the two rover spacecraft scuttling across the red planet are carrying bacteria from Earth.

The bacteria, bacillus safensis, were found in a chamber in California that had been used to test the rovers. Officials believe it is likely that some of the microbes, possibly from scientists’ skin, were on board when the mission left.

The craft, Spirit and Opportunity, landed on Mars last year. One key task was to look for signs of life: now it seems that if there are any organisms, it is man who has put them there. If proved, the contamination would raise concerns at possible breaches of a UN treaty to stop other planets being polluted from Earth.

Oops.

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warbi United States Posted on 07/19/2005 at 03:41 AM

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Hehe, chalk one up to exogenesis (assuming they are able to colonize)!

ingolfson Europe Posted on 07/19/2005 at 06:53 AM

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I don’t really see the problem. I mean, sure, it may make any eventual discovery of martian life (if any exists) harder to prove. But ANY such discovery would have to be vetted extensively to rule out just such a contamination case.

As for the ‘sanctity’ or ‘purity’ of a different planet - I must say that I clearly belong to the ‘Green’ and not the ‘Red’ faction (see Kim Stanley Robinson’. If life CAN flourish somewhere, but hasn’t so far, it is a worst a neutral, at best a positive to spread it there.

Qoayn United States Posted on 07/19/2005 at 08:45 AM

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It’s time to drop an algae coctail on that planet.
They’ll tell you where the water is.
At least by the time were done dicking around it will be barely breathable.

Maybe we could suck up a bit of the upper strata from the venesian atmosphere..  Then just plant the hell out of it.

Lets terraform that puppy.. ..after all
we are the aliens.

decrepitoldfool United States Posted on 07/19/2005 at 08:49 AM

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Yeah!  Let’s US go get us some Mars ‘fore they attack us like in that movie!!!  vampire

I’m not really too worried about this.  If (as I’ve seen in a couple studies) germs can’t live all that long on a toilet seat, they’re not likely to colonize Mars. 

There are a few places on Earth with (except for the atmosphere composition) Mars-like conditions, and bacteria are even hard to find there.

Deus Ex Dildo United States Posted on 07/19/2005 at 01:55 PM

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Well, as long as they were good rightous Christian skin microbes. Then its ok, those microbes can just go forth - raping and killing other microbes in the name of the LORD!  wink

Brock United States Posted on 07/19/2005 at 02:04 PM

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Well as long as American microbes got there first, that’s all that matters.

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Deus Ex Dildo United States Posted on 07/19/2005 at 02:18 PM

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Good point, as long as they were ‘Merikan bacteria - they’ll help spread FREEDOM in the universe!

decrepitoldfool United States Posted on 07/19/2005 at 02:24 PM

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Ahh hear them Martians is hidin’ WEAPONS OF MASS DEESTRUCTION!!!

Brock United States Posted on 07/19/2005 at 02:33 PM

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I never thought of that DOF. We might be trying to spread democracy to mars, or that will be the next reason given.

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Modern Major-General Canada Posted on 07/20/2005 at 02:49 PM

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If H.G. Wells has taught us anything, it’s that earthly microbes will kill Martians. We should send more over there, kill them all, and then steel their Tripods. Those things are cool.

Jill MaClure United States Posted on 08/31/2007 at 08:03 AM

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What about the two Russian probes on Venus?

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