This NASA Scientist Helps Prevent Mars from Contamination
Clip: Season 48 Episode 2 | 4m 58sVideo has Closed Captions
How do you keep Earth microbes from contaminating Mars?
The spacecraft has to be extremely clean. The entire spacecraft—that includes the rover, the heat shield, the descent stage, and back shell—must contain less than 500,000 bacterial endospores, or spores. Just to give you an idea, a teaspoon of seawater has ten times more bacteria.
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National Corporate funding for NOVA is provided by Carlisle Companies. Major funding for NOVA is provided by the NOVA Science Trust, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and PBS viewers.
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This NASA Scientist Helps Prevent Mars from Contamination
Clip: Season 48 Episode 2 | 4m 58sVideo has Closed Captions
The spacecraft has to be extremely clean. The entire spacecraft—that includes the rover, the heat shield, the descent stage, and back shell—must contain less than 500,000 bacterial endospores, or spores. Just to give you an idea, a teaspoon of seawater has ten times more bacteria.
Problems with Closed Captions? Closed Captioning Feedback
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National Corporate funding for NOVA is provided by Carlisle Companies. Major funding for NOVA is provided by the NOVA Science Trust, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and PBS viewers.