Mars does have life; we put it there.
> Forget back-contamination of Earth from Mars.
> Think forward contamination of Mars as a realized fact.
> Forget finding proof of contemporary "native" microbial life on Mars, a few feet or inches below
the surface.
> We will probably find microbial life on Mars near the surface; we put it there!
I read an article in The Times of India, July/18/2005,
quoting a scientist who says that the two MER rovers were
inadvertently carrying the microbes known as bacillus Safensis
inside them...Now Mars has LIFE...We sent it there....
And it will probably evolve/mutate into a hardier more resilient strain,
so that Mars will have plenty of windborne bacteria buried in the dust, soil and rocks
in decades and centuries to come....
Europa, anyone?