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The Conversation USA

Colonizing Mars means contaminating Mars – and never knowing for sure if it had its own native life

  • Written by David Weintraub, Professor of Astronomy, Vanderbilt University
Once people get there, Mars will be contaminated with Earth life.NASA/Pat Rawlings, SAIC, CC BY

The closest place in the universe where extraterrestrial life might exist is Mars, and human beings are poised to attempt to colonize this planetary neighbor within the next decade. Before that happens, we need to recognize that a very real possibility...

Read more: Colonizing Mars means contaminating Mars – and never knowing for sure if it had its own native life

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