"I have heard of a future possibility of mining asteroids for minerals. How would one go about finding asteroids that have important minerals?"
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Ask an Astrobiologist has received nearly a thousand questions about Nibiru and 2012, with more than 200 answers posted. Please read a summary of the answers that have already been posted, use the search feature and read the FAQ’s before submitting questions on these topics.
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Question
If we are planning on colonizing other planets in the future, why is NASA against "contaminating" other worlds with Earth-life?
If we truly want to know if we are alone in the universe, we had better make sure that when we do detect life elsewhere, it had better not be our own. For this reason, NASA mission protocols are written with great care so that neither astronauts nor equipment can contaminate other celestial bodies with Earth life. However, we know that from experience that this is not an easy task—the Apollo 12 astronauts, as you may know, brought back bacteria from the moon that had survived the harsh conditions of space for three years! While we were certain these bacteria were little earthlings left behind from a previous Apollo mission, we may not be so sure in future explorations. For these reasons, NASA and government officials go to great lengths to insure such a mistake does not confuse the answer to one of humanity’s age-old questions.
For an entire website dedicated to current laws, policies, and future concerns of planetary protection, see http://planpro.jpl.nasa.gov/
For a short summary of the history and ethics of planetary protection, check out http://www.spacedaily.com/news/life-01zg2.html
October 29, 2001
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