Oct. 4, 2000
Kathleen Burton
NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
Phone: 650/604-1731, 650/604-9000
kburton@mail.arc.nasa.gov
RELEASE: 00-68AR
AMES TO HOST 2-DAY MARS TERRAFORMING CONFERENCE
A renowned cadre of researchers from diverse scientific disciplines will present the latest findings in terraforming Mars at a 2-day conference at NASA’s Ames Research Center. The conference, "The Physics and Biology of Making Mars Habitable," will focus on restoring Mars' environment so it can support life, including possibly human life.
A Mars terraforming press briefing will be held on Wednesday, Oct. 11 between 12:30 p.m. and 1:00 p.m. in Bldg. 245, Room 215. Conference organizer and Mars researcher Dr. Chris McKay will be available to answer questions. Margarita Marinova, Julian Hiscox and Penny Boston also will be available at the briefing.
NOTE TO EDITORS AND NEWS DIRECTORS: News media are invited to attend a 2-day Mars terraforming conference at NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA, Oct. 10 and 11. The conference will be held daily from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. PDT. Scientific lectures and research papers will be presented in the second-floor auditorium in Bldg. N-245. To get to Ames, take the Moffett Field exit off Highway 101. At the Moffett Federal Airfield main gate, proceed to the Visitor Badging Office to obtain entry badges and maps to the conference. Bring press credentials and photo ID to gain admittance. Foreign media representatives must be escorted. Members of the media may attend the entire conference.
"Expanding life beyond the Earth is one of the most interesting new areas of Astrobiology" said McKay. "Re-creating a biosphere on Mars is the first step in that expansion."
Conference topics will include: near-term missions to Mars, engineering approaches to warming Mars, survival of life under Mars-like conditions, terraforming models and the problem of creating oxygen levels in a thick carbon-dioxide atmosphere.
More information, a conference agenda and a list of speakers are available at: http://web.mit.edu/mmm/www/terraforming.html
Astrobiology is the study of the origin, evoution, distribution and destiny of life in the universe. Located in California’s Silicon Valley, Ames is NASA’s Center of Excellence for Astrobiology, and manages the NASA Astrobiology Institute.
Media members may pre-register by sending an email to kburton@mail.arc.nasa.gov. Media should include: crew name(s), affiliation, nationality and passport number (if non-U.S.) citizens.
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