Additional uses of the facility

The adaptability and utility of the Orbiting Quarantine Facility (OQF) for purposes other than the quarantine mission are considered. One option in the quarantine testing protocol calls for performing a long-term, complete study of the Martian sample in space, rather than releasing the sample to an Earth-based laboratory. It is also possible that the studies prescribed in the protocol will not detect any life forms, in which case the mission will be completed as early as 60 to 90 days from the initial receipt of the Martian sample. It is because of this latter possibility that options for other uses of the facility were considered.