... let’s become a spacefaring people, occupying other worlds and filling the Solar System with vibrant life. Europa, Mars, the asteroid colonies - but also, interstellar. As Elon Musk recommends, let’s put our eggs in many...
... number in the hundreds. But who could have forecast the active volcanoes of Io, the salty ocean below Europa’s icy crust, the giant ice ravines on Miranda, or the geysers of Triton and Enceladus? Officially, Pluto is no longer...
... in the case of samples from the Moon) or restricted Earth return mission (e.g., in the case of samples from Mars or Europa). There are no special requirements for sample containment for unrestricted missions. However, for restricted missions, where...
..., had in the past) environments that could nourish biology. Planned missions to the outer solar system moons Europa and Enceladus are also motivated by the hope of finding life beyond Earth. But while we might discover...
... for it to support life (as we know it). Even so, it should be emphasised that although extra-terrestrial environments on Mars, Europa or even Enceladus may be considered ‘habitable’, it does not follow that such an environment contains life. For all...
... of suspicious phenomena under the surface of Mars, on moons orbiting the giant planets with a large subsurface ocean (Europa, Ganymede, Callisto, Enceladus, Titan), and also deep under the surface of the Earth. Once it was realised...