The European Space Agency is testing a new experiment that is similar to a pregnancy test. This experiment called the "Life marker Chip" is about the size of a postage stamp and was launched last week aboard a Russian rocket. The life marker chip has more than "2,000 life detecting samples that glow if they encounter life-critical compounds, such as proteins or DNA." The experiment works like a pregnancy test, "which uses color-changing chemicals to pick up traces of hormones found in greater numbers after conception." Scientists will examine the LMC's samples once it returns to Earth on Sept. 25 near the Russia-Kazakhstan border. The European Space Agency is testing this chip to see if it will be able to survive the harsh conditions of space it will encounter on a trip to Mars. If the experiment is a success, hopefully the "life Marker Chip" will be able to be attached to the European Space Agency's "ExoMars" robotic rover mission, planned for launch in 2013.
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