I’ve read that NASA has chosen landing sites that specifically have evidence of ancient rather than more recent or even present day water, with the logic that they do not want to potentially contaminate a site with active martian life with earth based microbes.

Can anyone speak more towards this or identify some of these potential sites that harbor life on mars? Will we ever directly probe somewhere that likely harbors life?

>Will we ever directly probe somewhere that likely harbors life

I recall a few years ago when they believed they had seen liquid water running down a hill they didn't want to move a probe near it for fear of contaminating it.

> NASA has chosen landing sites that specifically have evidence of ancient rather than more recent or even present day water

Source?