Lynn Carter

And obviously with RIMFAX, we want to keep driving, drive as long as possible everywhere to get data.

But I think a lot of it's going to be focused on trying to keep the samples safe and picking the correct samples.

It's also a problem that if we go there and we don't pick up any samples that people find interesting, then we're probably not going back there, because we're not going to design a whole sample return program for something if we don't think there's anything interesting in those things that we sampled.

So there's a lot of pressure to get that part right.

But yeah, I mean, that's a concern.

And I think people, they kind of know the answer, but they can't quantify the answer without any information about the landing site or what the plan is to come and get them.

So I think what they're going to look for is geochemical evidence that indicates that things could have been biologically processed combined with some evidence that there was liquid or standing water, since we think water is so important to life.

So I think those are the two kind of chemical things that they'll be looking for.

So ratios of minerals and chemistry that could indicate that something was processed by life, and also just evidence of water in the rock types.

Was there one?

There you go.

Yeah, so we did joke that he would bring the samples back.

I wish.

So I mean, there's no reason why somebody else couldn't build the spacecraft and go and get the samples.

But yeah, I mean, we have actually talked with them a lot, and especially like Red Dragon.

And if people are going to start sending things to Mars on a regular basis, even if it's not NASA, it's fine.

We're happy to supply instruments for them.

So we've talked about working with them to have a radar so that you could see subsurface ice.

And the U of A is interested in providing cameras for them for those missions.

And so that's a conversation that we've definitely had with private industry a lot.