To search for life, do it right!

In pursuing astrobiological studies of the other worlds of the solar system, tremendous investments are made and risks are taken to enable appropriate platforms (chiefly in the form of robotic landers and rovers) to access locations that have information about extraterrestrial life, its precursors and remnants. Those risks are taken and costs incurred either to enable a suite of measurements about the target body to be taken in situ, or to enable the return of pristine sample material to Earth for further study (and so that measurements can be taken) by teams of scientists here. Not surprisingly, those measurements can contribute to astrobiological understanding only if when they are made they reflect conditions on the target body itself, and do not waste the opportunity by studying Earth-source contamination, instead. As such, astrobiology studies on distant worlds require planetary protection and contamination control requirements to be met to avoid wasting money and time, and taking risks to study material that can be found on Earth itself. Because these requirements involve additional funding, and because they can introduce additional complexity into mission design and operations, there can be resistance to meeting those requirements on the part of mission designers and project personnel, despite the potential absurdity of going to pristine locations to measure self-sourced contamination. Some of this resistance can be traced to concerns about component performance and instrument sensitivity, complexed with the negative effects on performance and increases in risk that result from piecemeal attempts to accomplish planetary protection objectives within a spacecraft design - resulting in an attendant skepticism about the solutions thereby implemented. It is important to assess the planetary protection and contamination control requirements associated with astrobiologically significant targets for exploration missions, and examine the benefits of whole-system planetary protection solutions versus piecemeal attempts to meet the same requirements. It will be seen that for most such targets, their in situ study and sample retrieval are far better served, with less cost and reduced risk, when whole-system design approaches are taken. Such approaches are increasingly required as the astrobiological targets become better known, and the capabilities of Earth organisms to contaminate them is better understood.