Planetary protection technologies for planetary science instruments, spacecraft, and missions: Report of the NASA Planetary Protection Technology Definition Team (PPTDT)

Publication date: Available online 27 June 2019Source: Life Sciences in Space ResearchAuthor(s): John D. Rummel, D.E. PugelAbstractPlanetary bodies like Mars, Europa, and Enceladus pose the question, “How to study them without contaminating them and destroying future prospects to detect life, if it is there?” The natural trade-off, of course, is that the cleaner your spacecraft, the more you can explore such a body without contaminating it. As chartered by NASA Headquarters, the Planetary Protection Technology Definition Team (PPTDT) was asked to provide a report covering six different areas related to the engineering and technology challenges of implementing planetary protection requirements on solar system exploration missions:•Assessment of technical and engineering challenges to applying available microbial-reduction methods, including recontamination prevention, to spacecraft hardware and instruments, to meet current NASA requirements on preventing the forward contamination of potentially habitable worlds by future spacecraft missions (orbiters, atmospheric missions, landers, penetrators, and drills);•Identification of spacecraft and instrument materials known to be compatible with existing planetary protection protocols;•Planetary protection protocols/processes available or which appear promising, and areas ripe for technological development;•The technical and engineering challenges in ensuring that spacecraft hardware and instruments can meet organic cleanl...

Source: Life Sciences in Space Research - June 27, 2019 Category: Biology Source Type: research