Scientists have long known that fungi are resilient, but a new study suggests that some strains might survive every step of the long, brutal trip to Mars.
sterilization
Posted inMicrobiology & Virology, Missions & Hardware, Planetary Protection & Biosafety, Status Report
Effects Of Simulated Space Environmental Conditions On Cleanroom Microbes
Microorganisms can have major impacts on the success of NASA’s missions, including the integrity of materials, the protection of extraterrestrial environments, the reliability of scientific results, and maintenance of crew […]
Posted inBiosignatures & Paleobiology, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Microbiology & Virology, Missions & Hardware, Panspermia, Planetary Protection & Biosafety, Sample Return, Status Report
Extremotolerant Bacteria Identified In The NASA Mars Phoenix Cleanroom
Abstract Background Human-designed oligotrophic environments, such as cleanrooms, harbor unique microbial communities shaped by selective pressures like temperature, humidity, nutrient availability, cleaning reagents, and radiation. Maintaining the biological cleanliness of […]
Posted inMicrobiology & Virology, Missions & Hardware, Planetary Protection & Biosafety, Radiation, Sample Return, Status Report
Active Plasma Sterilizer For Planetary Protection And Contamination Control For Space Missions
This paper introduces a novel, compact plasma sterilization system, the Active Plasma Sterilizer (APS), for planetary protection space missions.
Posted inBiosignatures & Paleobiology, Exploration Gear & Tech, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Mars, Microbiology & Virology, Missions & Hardware, Panspermia, Planetary Protection & Biosafety, Sample Return, Status Report
Planetary Protection: Extremophilic Bacteria Isolated from the NASA Phoenix Mission Spacecraft Assembly Cleanrooms
Human-designed oligotrophic environments, such as cleanrooms, harbor unique microbial communities shaped by selective pressures like temperature, humidity, nutrient availability, cleaning reagents, and radiation. During the Phoenix spacecraft mission, genomes of […]
Posted inMissions & Hardware, Planetary Protection & Biosafety, Press Release
Distributed Compact Plasma Reactor Sterilization for Planetary Protection in Space Missions
This paper presents a proof-of-concept study establishing effectiveness of the Active Plasma Sterilizer (APS) for sterilization in planetary protection.