Biochemistry, Biophysics, and Structural Biology Commons^™

Minimal Carbon Requirements For Potential Colonizers Of Other Planets, Benjamin Tan

Biological Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

The NASA Office of Planetary Protection regulates the safe scientific exploration of other planets. Specifically, the office enacts rules to discourage interplanetary mission practices that would lead to the contamination of Earth-originating microbial life on other planets. Interplanetary contamination jeopardizes the potential to obtain reliable scientific evidence for extraterrestrial life. In coordination with this office, the biosignatures of potential colonizers of other celestials bodies are studied. Several organisms of Earth qualify as potential colonizers of other planets.

This experiment focused on the environment of Mars in particular. Two organisms were tested: Desulfovibrio arcticus and Desulfotalea psychrophila. Both are psychrotolerant or …