 |
|
| Is there life on Mars? |
|
 |
|
| A UK expedition to Mars hopes to answer the age-old question - is there life on Mars?
We met Professor Colin Pillinger and he explained what they hope to find in a galaxy far, far away... |
|
| As you're reading this, all being well, hundreds of thousands of
kilometres away a small, dish-shaped object should be hurtling
through space, nestled underneath a metal box bristling with
sensors and solar panels.
|
|
| That little dish is Beagle 2, a British-led research project to
travel to Mars to examine rocks and minerals in a quest to discover
whether there is, or has ever been, life on the red planet.
|
|
| At the end of its journey, the Beagle 2 probe will detach from
the European Space Agency's (ESA) Mars Express vehicle and
parachute down onto the inhospitable Martian surface. The
probe will then unfold, allowing a variety of drilling instruments
and sensors to carry out their important work. Professor Colin
Pillinger of the Open University, one of the key members of the
Beagle 2 team, explains what the instruments will be doing.
'The whole aim is to look for life, past and present, and the
whole equipment manifest is geared to making sure that we
understand the results we get.We're looking for relics of life in
the rocks and the soil so we need to be able to understand
the chemistry, to understand what it looks like close up under
the microscope.'
|
|
| Rock the planet |
|
| The project is also unique due to the involvement of rock group,
Blur, who have composed a piece of music to be transmitted to
earth to announce Beagle's arrival on Mars. A spot painting
by artist Damien Hirst will be used to calibrate the probe's
instruments. This has united the all-too-often disparate worlds
of art and science and has made for a very fruitful collaboration.
As Pillinger explains, 'It's not saying, here are a rock band
who are interested in space. These guys are actually doing
something which allows the public to switch on to it. To say,
look, these guys don't just trash hotel rooms, they're intelligent
people who can make a contribution - and they do that'.
|
|
| This is perhaps a typically British approach to the area of
high science that many find hard to comprehend. Says
Pillinger, 'Britain is very strong in our field, I think we're
demonstrating through Beagle that we're very strong in
planetary science.'
|
|
| Forward to space |
|
| The UK's universities and colleges are increasingly taking an
interest in this expanding field. As Professor Pillinger points out,
'When the ESA announces an opportunity the responses from
the UK are very high. It's seen as a forward-looking, dynamic
subject which depends on a lot of disciplines - chemistry, physics,
astronomy, IT, geology, earth sciences, biology and engineering
- there's just a lot of disciplines taking an interest now.'
|
|
| There's a lot riding on the success of the Beagle 2 mission,
both for the future of UK space research and our involvement
in continuing Martian exploration. As Pillinger explains, 'At the
moment, the ESA are considering the longer term programme
of Mars exploration because if Mars Express or Beagle turn out
to do a good job we'd expect the various science ministers of
the various countries to sign up.'
|
|
| All being well, Beagle 2 will arrive on Mars at 2.54 a.m. on
December 25, 2003 so it looks like being a very busy Christmas
for Professor Pillinger and his team.Whether or not life is found
on Mars, the UK's future as a major contributor to space
research is assured.
|
|
| For further information, see www.beagle2.com |
|
| < back |
|
|
|
