Sometimes I think we should just let the Russians or Chinese take over planetary exploration.<p>I&#x27;m not sure what it is about Europeans and Americans where we want to preserve things.  If we&#x27;re going to colonize Mars, contamination will happen, no question.  Maybe we&#x27;ll eradicate everything unique to the planet, but it&#x27;s inevitable.<p>If we are going to survive as a species, we&#x27;ll need peoples who are willing to push forth without pussyfooting.<p>Sure, it&#x27;s nice of you want to study pristine environments but I don&#x27;t think you can maintain the environment pristine once you have humans there in any way.