NASA/CP—2005-213461 Planetary Protection Issues in the Human Exploration of Mars Final Report May 9, 2005 Editors: M. E. Criswell M. S. Race J. D. Rummel A. Baker Report of a Workshop held June 20-23, 2001 at Pingree Park Mountain Campus Colorado State University Fort Collins, Colorado Workshop sponsored by NASA Ames Research Center Moffett Field, CA 94035 June 2005 The NASA STI Program Office . in Profile Since its founding, NASA has been dedicated to the • CONFERENCE PUBLICATION. Collected advancement of aeronautics and space science. The papers from scientific and technical confer- NASA Scientific and Technical Information (STI) ences, symposia, seminars, or other meetings Program Office plays a key part in helping NASA sponsored or cosponsored by NASA. maintain this important role. • SPECIAL PUBLICATION. 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Hanover, MD 21076-1320 NASA/CP—2005-213461 Planetary Protection Issues in the Human Exploration of Mars Final Report May 9, 2005 Editors: M. E. Criswell M. S. Race J. D. Rummel A. Baker Report of a Workshop held June 20-23, 2001 at Pingree Park Mountain Campus Colorado State University Fort Collins, Colorado Workshop sponsored by NASA Ames Research Center Moffett Field, CA 94035 National Aeronautics and Space Administration Ames Research Center Moffett Field, California 94035-1000 June 2005 Acknowledgments The preliminary goals, objectives, and format of this Workshop resulted largely from discussions among John Rummel, Gary Coulter, and Marvin Criswell. A Workshop Coordinating Committee comprised of Chris McKay and Mike Duke, along with Marvin Criswell as the Workshop host, worked with John Rummel in formulating the Workshop organization and invitation list. Financial support for the Work- shop was provided by NASA Ames Research Center, with further project guidance provided by Donald DeVincenzi, Chief, Space Science Division, at NASA Ames. Chris McKay’s effective leadership and technical advice, along with John Rummel’s many contributions, were critical to the success of the Workshop. Although scheduling conflicts kept several key individuals involved in the Workshop planning from attending the actual Workshop (Michael Duke, Donald DeVincenzi, and Gary Coulter), their contributions to the overall Workshop effort should be noted. When assembled, the remainder of the Workshop participants represented a wealth of professional knowledge and interest in the planetary protection concerns of future space endeavors. Their participation formed the core of the Workshop and made it successful. The roles and contributions of the Working Group rapporteurs and recorders were essential to the Workshop, and their reports form a vital resource for these proceedings. In addition to recorded notes by each working group, other input from Workshop participants, including the students in attendance, were very helpful in compiling this report. Special thanks go to Lee Criswell, graduate student and wife of workshop host, and 1st editor Marvin Criswell. Her background in life sciences was helpful on many of the biological and health related topics both during the workshop and afterwards. Margaret Race’s review and organization of technical content was greatly appreciated during the process of preparing this report. Additional review comments and suggestions from several others, most notably Sara Acevedo and Gary Coulter, also were very helpful in its preparation. Marvin Criswell Fort Collins, Colorado July 2004 Available from: NASA Center for AeroSpace Information National Technical Information Service 7121 Standard Drive 5285 Port Royal Road Hanover, MD 21076-1320 Springfield, VA 22161 (301) 621-0390 (703) 487-4650 Table of Contents FOREWARD.............................................................................................................................v EXECUTIVE SUMMARY .......................................................................................................1 INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND ..............................................................................7 ORGANIZATION OF THE WORKSHOP ...........................................................................11 OVERVIEW COMMENTS ON THE GENERAL WORKSHOP TOPICS (MARVIN CRISWELL).........................................................................................................15 WORKING GROUP REPORTS............................................................................................19 Working Group WG1 – Protecting Mars and Science: “Protecting Mars and Mars Samples from Forward Contamination”..........................................................................................................................................19 Working Group WG2 – Protecting Human Health: “Protecting Human Health Against Risks of the Mars Environment” ............................................................................................................................................31 Working Group WG3: Protecting Earth: “Preventing Back Contamination of Earth from Mars Return”........................................................................................................................................................................34 Workshop Group WG4A and WG4B – Operations I and Operations II: “Enabling a Safe, Productive Human Presence in the Exploration of Mars”.......................................................................................................41 Workshop Group WG4B – Operations II: “Enabling a Safe, Productive Human Presence in the Exploration of Mars”.................................................................................................................................................49 PLENARY DISCUSSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS ON OPERATIONS................57 OVERALL WORKSHOP CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS......................61 Conclusions .................................................................................................................................................................61 Recommendations for future workshop topics ......................................................................................................64 REFERENCES........................................................................................................................67 APPENDIX A: WORKSHOP VENUE AND AGENDA ......................................................69 Conference Venue ......................................................................................................................................................69 Meeting Schedule/Agenda.........................................................................................................................................70 iii APPENDIX B: WORKING GROUP COMMITTEE MEMBERS......................................73 APPENDIX C: WORKSHOP PARTICIPANTS LIST AND ADDRESSES .......................75 iv Foreword This workshop report, long delayed, is the first 21st century contribution to what will likely be a series of reports examining the effects of human exploration on the overall scientific study of Mars. The considerations of human-associated microbial contamination were last studied in a 1990 workshop (“Planetary Protection Issues and Future Mars Missions,” NASA CP-10086, 1991), but the timing of that workshop allowed