NASA is looking for a Planetary Protection Officer

Posted by: admin , August 5, 2017

If you’ve ever dreamed of protecting Earth from aliens, act now because NASA is taking applications for the role of Planetary Protection Officer!
According to the job advert, the successful candidate will help to stop Earth from being contaminated by extraterrestrial materials (such us from samples collected on missions), as well as prevent contamination from Earth on planets and moons explored by us Earthlings.
As part of your duties, “frequent travel may be required”, but there are no details as to where.
It sounds great, but there are some minimum requirements. You must have a “broad engineering expertise”, and possess an “advanced knowledge of planetary protection”, and be a US citizen/resident of American Samoa.
The role’s duration is for an initial 3 years, with the possibility of a 2-year extension, and pays between $124,406 to $187,000 per year.
There are only 2 such full-time roles in the world, with the current officer, Dr Catharine Conley appointed in 2006. Dr Conley said she wanted to keep Mars from being contaminated by anything from Earth.
If you’re interested, applications close on 14 August 2017 – linked here.