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Can Life Exist on Mars? Bruce Jakosky University of Colorado at Boulder 3 October 2016 Mars In The Public Eye Earth Mars All Earth Life Represents Only One Independent Example Of Life Life Can Reside In A Wider Range Of Environments on Earth Than Previously Imagined Cryptoendolith, Antarctica Grand Prismatic Spring, Yellowstone Radiation-resistant bacteria Sea-floor hydrothermal vent Life Existed On Earth Almost As Soon As It Was Possible Environmental Requirements For Life • Liquid water • Access to the biogenic elements • A source of energy to drive metabolism Liquid Water Has Been Present On Mars Throughout Time Liquid Water May Occur at the Surface Even Today Search For Life On Mars: The Viking Mission Search For Life On Mars: The Viking Mission Search For Life On Mars: ALH84001 Meteorite From Mars Search For Life On Mars: ALH84001 Meteorite From Mars Mars Has A Complex And Interconnected Environmental System (Arrows point from a process, toward something that the process affects.) Answering The Life Question Likely Will Require A Sample-Return Mission Mars Habitability And Occurrence Of Life Will Inform Us About Distribution Of Life In The Universe (Artist’s rendition of some of the known planets in our galaxy.) “There are two possibilities. Maybe we’re alone. Maybe we’re not. Both are equally frightening.” Arthur C. Clarke “We shall not cease from exploration, and the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started and know the place for the first time.” T. S. Eliot
