From: Technotranscendence (neptune@mars.superlink.net)
Date: Wed Sep 25 2002 - 19:12:21 MDT
On Wednesday, September 25, 2002 5:08 PM Jeff Davis jrd1415@yahoo.com
wrote:
> Venus may be hiding life
> http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2002-09/ns-vmb092502.php
Thanks for sending this. I heard about it elsewhere, but the details I
previously got were sketchy and I forgot to search for more.
> Question: What methods might be used to efficiently
> retrieve (and return) a sample for examination?
A ballon, airship, or some sort of flyer might do the trick, for
detection, _in situ_ research, and sample return. (I once had an idea
about "mining" Venus' atmosphere for carbon. Quixotic in the extreme
considering that there are other plentiful sources in space.)
Another possibility: have a craft that skims the atmosphere, scooping up
a huge amount and returning to space or even to Earth orbit or Earth's
surface.
Still another: a lander that grabs samples on the way down and maybe
does analysis on landing or during descent. Yes, it might be destroyed,
but before then it could do its job and return data.
I imagine we can also dream up remote sensing techniques -- maybe ones
that aren't so remote.
I wonder, too, if there is life on Venus, if it's native or a
contaminant from Earth (or somewhere else) -- and, if the latter, how
long ago did the contamination take place.
On the other side of the equation, researchers right now and on this
world can try to mimic some of the reactions, such as abiotic production
of carbonyl sulphide, to see if the life hypothesis here is all that
strong.
Cheers!
Dan
http://uweb.superlink.net/neptune/
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