An American scientist believes that if life is finally proved to exist on Mars, its origins may be more mundane and closer to home than we think. ‘‘I believe there is life on Mars, and it’s unequivocally there, because we sent it,’’ said Andrew Schuerger in the New Scientist Magazine on Wednesday. The University of Florida scientist said there is a good chance that microbes from Earth have made it to Mars by hitching a lift aboard space probes. Schuerger said of all probes sent to Mars, only the two Viking craft in 1976 were adequately heat-sterilised. Procedures used for all missions since then, including NASA’s twin Rovers and Europe’s Beagle 2, would have left some microbes on board. — (Reuters)
