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From: eugene@ames-lm.UUCP (Eugene Miya)
Newsgroups: net.space
Subject: Sterilization of space craft
Message-ID: <275@ames-lm.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 28-May-84 18:00:20 EDT
Article-I.D.: ames-lm.275
Posted: Mon May 28 18:00:20 1984
Date-Received: Thu, 31-May-84 23:57:04 EDT
Organization: NASA-Ames Research Center, Mtn. View, CA
Lines: 18

The Viking Landers which went to Mars were adequately sterilized. The
Galileo probe will probably also be adequately sterilized, too.  The
environmental chambers where is this are located at JPL.  The probes
to Venus (pioneer) were also probably cleaned, too.  This has to be
done because like the case of Viking, instrumentation could be affected
by non sterile equipment.  Carl Sagan and others (in the early days of
the lunar program) pointed out the need to avoid contamination of the
worlds we visit in a series of papers which I don't have the references
to.  There are limits to the (and tests of these limits) procedures
used, however, and probably some sci fi writer would make some interesting
fiction based on a Star Trek II Genesis idea (modern bacteria is pretty
sophisticated compared to early life forms).

--eugene miya
  NASA Ames Res. Ctr.

[Disclaimer: The above views do not state official policy or opinion of NASA
and are those of the author.]