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Why biologists should support the exploration of Mars
Author(s) -
Maurel MarieChristine,
Zaccai Giuseppe
Publication year - 2001
Publication title -
bioessays
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.175
H-Index - 184
eISSN - 1521-1878
pISSN - 0265-9247
DOI - 10.1002/bies.1140
Subject(s) - astrobiology , mars exploration program , life on mars , extraterrestrial life , enthusiasm , data science , environmental ethics , martian , computer science , biology , psychology , philosophy , social psychology
Abstract Physicists, chemists and geologists in the USA and Europe propose that the search for extraterrestrial life is an important justification for the exploration of Mars. Biologists, however, much more excited by the advent of the postgenome sequencing era, in general display little enthusiasm for planetary exploration. We argue that the search for traces of life on Mars represents a major thought‐provoking challenge for the life sciences that should be taken up by the biological community. BioEssays 23:977–978, 2001. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.