CBCNEWS - Earthlings plan to send aliens to Mars

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Sent: June 18, 2001 8:16 AM
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Subject: CBCNEWS - Earthlings plan to send aliens to Mars

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The following is a news item posted on CBC NEWS ONLINE
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EARTHLINGS PLAN TO SEND ALIENS TO MARS
WebPosted Tue Jun 5 20:27:27 2001

GAINESVILLE, FLORIDA--A Martian invasion could take place as early as
2007 - but it will be Earth invading the Red Planet, instead of the
other way around.

Researchers at the University of Florida are working to develop
genetically altered plants they hope to plant in Martian soil.

A robotic gardener would scoop up, analyze and fertilize the red Martian
soil in miniature greenhouses. These shelters would house germinating
specimens of a common mustard plant known as thale cress.

Jelly genes

A common weed along roadsides and trails, the plant, also known as
Arabidopsis thaliana , was picked for the project because of its short
life cycle, about 5 weeks, its small size, about 18 centimetres and
because its entire genetic structure has been mapped and sequenced.

Scientists will alter the plant, adding marker genes from other species
to make it glow in response to environmental stresses like drought,
extreme temperatures and noxious soils.

One specimen will emit a greenish light in the presence of excessive
levels of heavy metals. Another will turn blue to signal peroxides.

One of the marker genes comes from aequorea victoria , a jellyfish found
along the Pacific coast of North America.

Survival skills

The plants will have to be tough - surviving a temperature range from 7
degrees Celsius during the day to minus 112 degrees Celsius at night.

If Arabidopsis succeeds, the researchers hope it will spark more
interest in the possibility of "terraforming" Mars – engineering
its ecosystems to make them more suitable for Earth life.

The researchers are trying to secure a spot for their experiment on a
NASA-sponsored Mars mission. Rob Ferl at the University of Florida says
he has no doubt the plants will survive on Mars.

Ferl says when it happens, it will show that Earth-evolved life can
thrive on distant worlds - and will set the stage for human
colonization.

Links:
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