BERLIN, Feb 22:
Some microbes found on Earth may temporarily survive on the surface of Mars, according to a study that could be vital for the success of future missions to the Red Planet.
The researchers from NASA and German Aerospace Center tested the endurance of microorganisms to Martian conditions by launching them into stratosphere, the second major layer of Earth’s atmosphere which closely represents key conditions on Mars.
The study, published in the journal Frontiers in Microbiology, paves the way for understanding not only the threat of microbes to space missions, but also the opportunities for resource independence from Earth.
“We successfully tested a new way of exposing bacteria and fungi to Mars-like conditions by using a scientific balloon to fly our experimental equipment up to Earth’s stratosphere,” said Marta Filipa Cortesao, joint first author of the study from the German Aerospace Center.
“Some microbes, in particular spores from the black mold fungus, were able to survive the trip, even when exposed to very high UV radiation,” Cortesa said. (PTI)
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