A team of scientists joined together to create a new cleaning protocol that could be implemented during "Search for Life" missions on Mars and other locations, it was recently announced.

Researchers published an outline of the protocol in the most recent edition of Astrobiology, and said it was developed by the University of Leeds and NASA.  Specifically, the study takes a look at forward contamination -- accidental contamination in which viruses and bacteria from Earth are taken for a ride into space and jeopardize missions.

To help sterilize instruments and tools used in foreign environments, a "cocktail of chemicals" were used on glacial ice core drills and other sampling devices.  It's now being tested using the Arctic Mars Analog Svalbard Expeditions (AMASE) mission, as the Svalbard islands in the Arctic Ocean is a popular destination for researchers developing technology for space.

"We are trying to avoid a case of mistaken identity," co-author and University of Leeds professor Liane Benning said.  "We know that on Mars, if present, any biological signature will be extremely scarce.  Therefore it is essential that we are able to minimize 'background noise' and to document just how clean our sampling devices really are before we use them."

They can now successfully fully decontaminate sampling devices inside the lab, but now must show its chemical creation will work out in the field.  Taking part in research in the Arctic for a couple of years has given researchers time to modify their work, and it should be interesting to see how well the chemical cocktail does on a real mission.

There is growing concern that even if a significant find is made on Mars, it could be easily contaminated by dirty equipment, or its trip from the Red Planet back to Earth.  Specifically, NASA and other researchers continually are worried about forward contamination, and how to deal with it so missions aren't doomed from the beginning.