University of the Basque Country

University researchers find ballpoint pen ink contaminating Martian meteorites during lab preparation

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Scientists from the University of the Basque Country found traces of ballpoint pen ink in six samples of Martian meteorites processed between 2001 and 2014, revealing contamination introduced during laboratory preparation rather than extraterrestrial origin. The discovery, published in Applied Geochemistry, underscores a persistent challenge in planetary science: despite rigorous cleaning protocols, terrestrial materials like … Read more

Ballpoint Pen Ink Contaminates Martian Meteorite Samples During Lab Processing

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Ballpoint Pen Ink Contaminates Martian Meteorite Samples During Lab Processing

Scientists from the University of the Basque Country in Spain discovered traces of ballpoint pen ink in Martian meteorite samples received from NASA’s Johnson Space Center, revealing a contamination issue in planetary sample preparation. The contamination occurred during the cleaning and processing of six meteorite slices collected between 2001 and 2014, despite efforts to remove … Read more