Launch of an astrobiological experiment on Columbus
1er décembre 2007
The space shuttle Atlantis, launched on 7 February 2008, from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, carries the European science module Columbus to the International Space Station. Columbus includes an experiment to test the ability of unprotected plant seeds to survive in space. Scientists from the Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique and the Observatoire de Paris (LERMA) have proposed that seeds are suited to resist conditions that would kill bacterial spores in seconds.
If seeds in the experiment survive, it will indicate that dormant life forms like seeds could withstand dissemination through space — such as being scattered after a meteorite impact on Earth.
Astronauts will attach the seeds of tobacco and Arabidopsis plants to the exterior of the Columbus module, where they will be exposed for 18 months to ultra-violet and cosmic radiation passing through magnesium fluoride windows. The experiment includes mutants that lack the flavonoid sunscreens responsible for protection against UV, including the high energy VUV part of the solar spectrum that is normally absorbed by the stratospheric ozone layer. Seeds carrying an bacterial gene will allow biological and physical measurements of the effects of space conditions on a specific DNA segment. After their return to Earth, germination ability and extent of mutations will be assessed. Seed survival will indicate that dormant life forms on Earth could withstand the temperature extremes, vacuum, UV and cosmic radiation encountered in interplanetary transfer of life.
More information : http://www.esa.int/SPECIALS/Columbus/SEMTTQ73R8F_0.html
The team is composed of : David Tepfer (INRA, Versailles), Andreja Zalar (INRA, Versailles), and Sydney Leach (LERMA, Observatoire de Paris)
Contact Sydney Leach (Observatoire de Paris, LERMA)
Dernière modification le 4 mars 2013