Man living on Mars? Is it likely? Is it even feasible? Is it morally acceptable, considering humankind’s natural talents for consumption?
I agree. It sounds a little crazy. A little extreme even. However, in the inevitable case when life on Earth may cease, whether Doomsday is by natural disasters, an astronomical anomaly, or even by our own hands, it may be nice to have a backup plan.
Not that the colonization would be a simple task of moving all our furniture. Mars is a dead planet. Yes, it has resources, like ice, raw ore to refine, even a slight atmosphere (if you enjoy breathing lethal gasses). However, man needs more than that. A planet needs more than that.
The first steps of colonization would be arduous, very taxing, both in resources and manpower. We would need to establish a magnetic shield to protect life from the hazards of cosmic radiation- a very real threat that attacks every corner of the universe on a daily basis, with enough force that could easily, say, ignite the oxygen here on earth. We are safe because of a semi molten core, something Mars currently does not have. Replicating this could be very difficult, and something that should be maintained on the surface, with likely thousands of apparatus.
Of course, we will need oxygen. We just can’t seem to get very far without it. The easiest way to produce mass amounts of oxygen would be to grow an algae across the surface. However, the same gasses currently available that would kill us, would surely be more than a simple algae can handle. We may have to literally deplete the toxicity levels before any growth could even occur. Naturally, these plant forms will need a fuel source as abundant and constant as our sun is here on earth. While the sun’s s rays can stimulate some growth on Mars, the reality is that there just isn’t enough to sustain life in anything more than a simple moss. If we ever want trees on Mars, we would have to come up with something different. The best solution may be to start with a large number of greenhouses illuminated with Leonard’s Ray (a phenomenon in which an electron fires off so quickly it actually burns and gives off a regular light source.) Maybe, by the time we’re ready, we could even use regulated plasma bursts as a temporary light source.
This natural growth will likely grant Mars an ozone layer, a weak one, albeit, that will probably take generations of careful management to gain enough potency (for lack of a better word) to be useful. Once done, the hard work can begin.
Mars lies pretty far away from the warmth of the sun. Though it’s average temperature isn’t too far from inhabitable, man cannot expect to stay indoors forever. We would need to raise the temperature on Mars, this is without a doubt. I cannot say at this point what the proper way to do this is. If we were able to navigate Mars’ core, we may find a suitable amount of geothermic heat to funnel toward the surface. Our very shield devices in fact would generate a lot of heat themselves- would it be enough? I haven’t done the math to tell.
Once we’re warm, able to breath, and not have to worry about baking under immense amounts of radiation, I should think we’d be very much like the Pilgrims in the New World. We could begin to build and terraform, cultivate and expand- let’s all just try not to piss off any locals we might find this time.
