HIGH noon on the Martian equator would make short work of any terrestrial microbes foolish enough to sit out in the sun. Tests in a simulated Martian environment show that solar ultraviolet radiation would sterilise contaminated surfaces exposed to the sun within 15 minutes, says Andrew Schuerger of Dynamac Corporation, who is working at the Kennedy Space Center.
NASA sponsored the study to assess whether efforts to prevent terrestrial microbes carried on space probes from contaminating Mars are sufficient. The vacuum and cold of interplanetary space are not enough to kill all spores, and protective cases shield spacecraft from solar…
