German Students Aim to Put Cyanobacteria

[JB80]

http://www.science20.com/astro_watch/blog/german_students_aim_to_put_cyanobacteria_on_mars_to_generate_oxygen-151749

Mars is a very harsh and hostile environment for future human explorers and like any other known planet it has no breathable air. That could change someday, and it may be soon enough for our generation to witness it, as the student team from Germany has a bold vision to make a first step to terraform the Red Planet, turning it more Earth-like. The plan is to send cyanobacteria to Mars to generate oxygen out of carbon dioxide which is the main component of Martian atmosphere (nearly 96%).

I saw this and found it interesting. No doubt it will cause a debate but I find it fascinating and am all for such a venture.

[ronin]

Seems strange to attempt:

Mars is smaller then the earth so cannot hold a dense atmosphere, it has no magnetic field so gets blasted by the sun, it has no significant water, it is outside the habitable zone.

It might have an atmosphere of 96% CO2 bit there is so little atmosphere that 96% of almost nothing is even less. You couldn't stand on Mars without a space suit. Mars surface pressure is 0.006 that of earths (good vacuum). There is not enough there to play with - where is the other 99% of atmosphere to come from? Small question of Nitrogen as well, cannot see cyanobacteria converting CO2 to N2.

So exactly how is it to be "terraformed" ?

[JB80]

I think it's a great idea and if these type of experiments are never tried then honestly why bother going into space at all?

As far as the experiment goes then it makes sense if we ever want to send humans to other planets/moons and all this would be is a basic concept test to see if cyanobacteria can do what they think it can, no actual terraforming but it would certainly be a first step in such a process and Mars is probably the most suitable and accessible of world planet to try it.

As for other issues of which there are many well they are questions for other experiments, of which I hope become more and more plentiful and not just on Mars.

[CharlesW]

It would be nice if we could send a probe to a region where indigenous life might be found before we go mucking it up with our own stuff. Martian conditions can easily be replicated in a lab so sending bacteria there before we've made any serious attempt to find the real Martians is Lunacy.

[NickK]

Hmm problem here is that nobody owns a planet.. so you'll make friends and influence people by doing that lol.

Independently attempting this simply destroys all exploratory science before it's ready..

[Ruud]

Another objection: turning Mars's C0₂ into oxygen would make the planet colder.

It's a weird idea, really.

[r3i]

How would this experiment fit in with all the initiatives relating to planetary protection?: http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Planetary_protection