1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:03,260 Narrator: Each year in early spring, a remote 2 00:00:03,280 --> 00:00:05,870 desert in California serves as the backdrop 3 00:00:05,890 --> 00:00:09,200 for the public to meet NASA researchers and experience 4 00:00:09,220 --> 00:00:11,690 what it might be like to see and study 5 00:00:11,710 --> 00:00:14,290 the surface of Mars. 6 00:00:14,310 --> 00:00:17,260 Held in Death Valley National Park in California, 7 00:00:17,280 --> 00:00:20,870 the MarsFest Planetary Festival draws a wide range 8 00:00:20,890 --> 00:00:24,730 of fans from space enthusiasts to casual visitors 9 00:00:24,750 --> 00:00:28,130 over the annual 3-day event. 10 00:00:28,150 --> 00:00:29,940 The goal of the festival is to share with the 11 00:00:29,960 --> 00:00:32,610 public the importance of research done in extreme 12 00:00:32,630 --> 00:00:35,310 environments on Earth so as to better understand 13 00:00:35,330 --> 00:00:36,970 what conditions might be like 14 00:00:36,990 --> 00:00:39,810 on planets like Mars. 15 00:00:39,830 --> 00:00:42,850 Studies at these planetary analog sites are 16 00:00:42,870 --> 00:00:45,330 critical to understanding the diversity and 17 00:00:45,350 --> 00:00:47,740 resilience of life and whether it could 18 00:00:47,760 --> 00:00:51,910 potentially exist elsewhere in the galaxy. 19 00:00:51,930 --> 00:00:54,720 Famous for its extremely dry and desolate 20 00:00:54,740 --> 00:00:57,870 landscape, Death Valley has research sites within 21 00:00:57,890 --> 00:00:59,800 its boundaries that are not well known 22 00:00:59,820 --> 00:01:02,210 as analogs for other planets. 23 00:01:02,230 --> 00:01:04,220 Several of these are featured in field trips 24 00:01:04,240 --> 00:01:08,120 guided by scientists to sites such as Mars Hill, 25 00:01:08,140 --> 00:01:11,510 Badwater Basin, Ubehebe Volcanic Field and 26 00:01:11,530 --> 00:01:13,770 Mesquite Sand Dunes. 27 00:01:13,790 --> 00:01:16,250 Aaron Zent: Death Valley is an analog for 28 00:01:16,270 --> 00:01:19,480 specific kinds of places on Mars. 29 00:01:19,500 --> 00:01:23,180 Places that may have very salt-rich life or 30 00:01:23,200 --> 00:01:27,520 places where the wind is dominating the environment. 31 00:01:27,540 --> 00:01:31,660 Here, you've got a huge variety of different kinds 32 00:01:31,680 --> 00:01:32,990 of environments. 33 00:01:33,010 --> 00:01:36,160 They're all very handy to get to and so, 34 00:01:36,180 --> 00:01:38,760 we have a tremendous amount of flexibility here. 35 00:01:38,780 --> 00:01:40,930 Narrator: In addition to the field trips, MarsFest 36 00:01:40,950 --> 00:01:43,690 features presentations by researchers from NASA 37 00:01:43,710 --> 00:01:47,040 centers such as Ames, JPL and Goddard, as well as 38 00:01:47,060 --> 00:01:49,540 from the SETI Institute, the Mars Society, 39 00:01:49,560 --> 00:01:52,800 the Planetary Society and other partner organizations 40 00:01:52,820 --> 00:01:55,760 and volunteer groups. 41 00:01:55,780 --> 00:01:58,160 One of the highlights of the festival is the Mars 42 00:01:58,180 --> 00:02:01,100 presentation by acclaimed planetary scientist 43 00:02:01,120 --> 00:02:04,890 Chris McKay from NASA Ames Research Center. 44 00:02:04,910 --> 00:02:06,540 Chris McKay: We have a particular book about 45 00:02:06,560 --> 00:02:08,710 how to build life and that book is written 46 00:02:08,730 --> 00:02:10,770 in the language of DNA. 47 00:02:10,790 --> 00:02:13,360 The question that I'm asking is "Is that the only way 48 00:02:13,380 --> 00:02:15,520 to write such a book? Can you write the book of 49 00:02:15,540 --> 00:02:17,890 life in a completely different language?" 50 00:02:17,910 --> 00:02:20,770 And if we find that the answer to that is "Yes," 51 00:02:20,790 --> 00:02:24,530 if we find on Mars alien microbes, organisms that have a 52 00:02:24,550 --> 00:02:27,450 different biochemical and genetic structure, 53 00:02:27,470 --> 00:02:29,800 we might learn something from that study that we 54 00:02:29,820 --> 00:02:32,590 would never learn by just studying the language of 55 00:02:32,610 --> 00:02:35,440 DNA that we have on life on Earth. 56 00:02:35,460 --> 00:02:37,270 Narrator: Additional displays and interactive 57 00:02:37,290 --> 00:02:40,400 exhibits are part of the MarsFest experience at 58 00:02:40,420 --> 00:02:42,180 the Death Valley Visitor's Center 59 00:02:42,200 --> 00:02:44,440 in Furnace Creek. 60 00:02:44,460 --> 00:02:47,060 The planetary analog festival is a collaborative 61 00:02:47,080 --> 00:02:50,000 effort between NASA, the National Park Service, 62 00:02:50,020 --> 00:02:52,360 and the SETI Institute. 63 00:02:52,380 --> 00:02:54,970 MarsFest is an important part of sharing with the 64 00:02:54,990 --> 00:02:57,500 public what NASA missions are doing and showing 65 00:02:57,520 --> 00:03:01,040 the connection to life on Earth.