COSPAR Panel on Planetary Protection Colloquium, Bern, Switzerland, September 2015 (Meeting Reports) (original) (raw)

COSPAR Workshop on Planetary Protection for Outer Planet Satellites and Small Solar System Bodies

2010

The COSPAR Panel on Planetary Protection (PPP) held a COSPAR Workshop to consider the planetary protection status of Outer Planet satellites and other small Solar System bodies, and the measures that should be taken (or not) to protect them from Earth-sourced biological and organic contamination. The starting point for the 2009 COSPAR Planetary Protection Workshop at the European Space Policy Institute (ESPI) in Vienna was to consider the prob-abilistic approach in place in the COSPAR Planetary Protection Policy for the protection of Europa. The participants of this Workshop discussed the application of the approach and the associated formulation and parameterization to other Outer Planet satellites and small bodies. This application, as well as other considerations brought forward by the group, resulted in a full consideration of the various Outer Planet satellites and other Small Solar system bodies. The report on this workshop contains recommendations for the categorization of missions that may encounter or closely study the Outer Solar System in the future. Subsequently, the Work-shop also reviewed the consequences of applying these recommendations to the Outer Planets Flagship missions that have been under consideration by ESA, NASA, and their cooperating partners. A further workshop, concentrating on the specifics of Titan and Ganymede missions, was proposed by the group.

Planetary Protection in Future Solar System Exploration

2012

This Perspective analyses the importance of planetary protection in the future exploration of the Solar System. A major obstacle in this respect seems to be the contested scope of planetary protection. Although the more specific issue of planetary contamination has been addressed by the United Nations and various national space agencies, none of them have developed a holistic and all-embracing concept of planetary protection. As a consequence, the increasing number of planetary exploration probes, the prospect of a sample return mission and maybe even manned missions to Mars in the long run might have side-effects that limit future options, resulting in catastrophic events, or putting humankind in a position that might be regretted in the future, given the changing relationship between the environment and ourselves. Although the exploration of Mars is most relevant in this respect, the issues addressed in this Perspective might be relevant in establishing a sustainable relationship ...

The COSPAR Panel on Planetary Protection Role, Structure and Activities

Space Research Today, 2019

The exploration and use of outer space is the province of all humankind. This principle in Article I of the UN Outer Space Treaty guarantees the freedom to explore outer space, including the Moon and other celestial bodies, without discrimination, and to carry out scientific investigations. This freedom, however, comes with a responsibility described in Article IX of the same Treaty. It states that space activities have to be conducted with due regard to the corresponding interests of all other States Parties to the Treaty. The avoidance of potentially harmful interference with activities of other States Parties is central. The harmful contamination of the Moon and other celestial bodies and the need to ensure safety of the Earth are highlighted in this context. With the entry into force of the Outer Space Treaty in 1967, planetary protection became part of international law. In observance of those treaty obligations, an international standard for planetary protection has been developed by the Committee on Space Research (COSPAR) which provides a forum for international consultation and has formulated a Planetary Protection Policy with associated requirements that are put in place after examination of the most updated relevant scientific studies and recommendations made by the COSPAR Panel on Planetary Protection.