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2 Setting the Stage: Astrobiological Possibilities on Mars
Pages 11-14

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From page 11...
... Nevertheless, the evidence tells us that microbial life has been a major feature of Earth's environment throughout most of our planet's history, and that microorganisms appeared within a mere few hundred million years after life first became a possibility, a very short time in comparison with the ages of the planetary bodies in our Solar System. The rapidity, arguably translatable to imply ease, with which microorganic life seems to have taken hold on Earth suggests the possibility that life's origin is not an especially difficult or slow climb, and thus it need not be thought a rare event.
From page 12...
... To the date of this report, investigations of Mars have addressed, slightly, whether living organisms currently exist on that planet's surface, and somewhat more thoroughly, whether present conditions on the surface of Mars are conducive to the survival of Earth organisms. Half a century ago, the Viking Landers conducted the so-called Labeled Release Experiment, involving experiments and measurements on surface materials specifically aimed at searching out metabolic activity of possible Martian surface organisms.
From page 13...
... In that case, any Earthly cellular contaminants found on Mars would, upon sufficiently close examination, confidently be interpretable as such, and would not confuse the search for indigenous Martian organisms. However, there does not currently exist a broad scientific consensus around any intrinsic approach to reliably and definitively distinguish indigenous extraterrestrial (cellular)
From page 14...
... Finding 1: The discovery of indigenous life on Mars would be a signal event in the development of human knowledge, with widespread impact and implications. Preserving unambiguous separation or distinguishability of terrestrial organisms from indigenous Martian organisms, by application of planetary protection protocols, or by other scientifically accepted means, is essential to realizing NASA's solar system exploration goals and addressing profound questions that have long preoccupied humans.


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