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May 06, 2014

NASA Workshop Focuses On Lunar, Planetary Exploration

Fourth International Workshop Designed To Foster Collaborative Efforts

The Earth's nearest celestial neighbor, the moon, received frequent visitors during the 1960s and early 1970s culminating in six landings by humans during the Apollo Program. In recent years, numerous robotic orbiters and landers have returned to the moon, Mars and beyond, creating new interest in the technology needed for extraterrestrial exploration.

Concerns Raised About Interplanetary Exchange Of Micro-Organisms

In the movies, humans often fear invaders from Mars. These days, scientists are more concerned about invaders to Mars, in the form of micro-organisms from Earth. Three recent scientific papers examined the risks of interplanetary exchange of organisms using research from the International Space Station. All three, Survival of Rock-Colonizing Organisms After 1.5 Years in Outer Space, Resistance of Bacterial Endospores to Outer Space for Planetary Protection Purposes and Survival of Bacillus Pumilus Spores for a Prolonged Period of Time in Real Space Conditions, have appeared in Astrobiology Journal.