Will Humans Ever Live On Mars?
Global warming. Nuclear warfare. Donald Trump. These are some of the problems we face in today’s society. In order for the human race to ensure its survival from such threats, it is imperative that humans expand beyond earth and into space. If the earth were ever to be destroyed, the human race would continue to exist on another planet. Many scientists believe Mars would be a suitable planet to begin colonizing. Mars has ice underneath its soil, which translates into water. Its land is solid, making it easy to establish buildings. Finally, its distance from earth is the second shortest of any major planet. However, Mars should not be considered as a candidate for colonization. The reason being so is because
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The journey there is extremely perilous as space travel exposes humans to a hostile environment as well as isolation (NASA). The tight quarters in a spaceship makes it easier for microbes and microorganism to spread among astronauts. With a full year of space travel ahead of them, sick astronauts are a liability, to themselves and the crew. Not only that, being confined in an environment will affect astronauts psychologically as well. No matter how professional, tempers will flare, and more than a few members will begin to few isolated from the team. This creates a strained relationship which may affect the quality at which an astronaut performs his duties, jeopardizing the safety of everyone involved. Upon arrival, it is an endless landscape of nothingness. There is no source of entertainment and settlers would be forced to work diligently every single day, struggling to adapt and survive in the Martian climate. Furthermore, settlers would have to look and live with the same people for the rest of their lives. In addition, settlers sent to Mars would be on a one way trip, as it extremely expensive for anyone to be sent back. According to an online survey, only 7% of Americans would agree to go on a one way trip to Mars (Swanson). In the long run, less and less people will want to go to Mars, eventually leaving the current settlers to die off one by one, until there is only one left. The thought of being alone on a planet is frightening, and a very real possibility. Even if settlers could be sent back, it would take at least a few months for the planets to get close enough to make the journey. That is a few months without seeing loved one, and clouds in the bright blue sky, as well as feeling the gentle breeze brushing against the skin, and the warmth of natural sunlight. More so, the Martian gravity will have affected the human body, making it extremely difficult to readjust to life back on earth. For the
...egular people, believing that if someone was to go to Mars they might have been able to survive A variety of organic compounds present may mean a life is probable. Also, if the trip to Mars in 2023 turns out to be a positive one, then it will prove to everyone that in the future more and more people will move to this other planet. A lot of people will find it unnecessary to stay on Earth if they can start a new life somewhere else in the galaxy. Even though the trip will have America paying billions and billions of dollars, it truly is worth it. A life on Mars could mean living to an older age and being healthier. The point of going to the Red Planet is to find out if there is a better life somewhere other than on Earth. Just like NASA astronaut, Buzz Aldrin said, humans will most likely reach Mars and when they do humans will turn into a two-planet species.
Mars would be a challenging place for humans to live because of its dry conditions (lack of water) and cold temperatures. The frequent sandstorms and dust devils whipping across the surface of the planet would also make human existence difficult. Scientists believe that Mars had a think atmosphere in the past. They also think Mars was warmer and may have once contained liquid water.
Who knows what kind of opportunities can come from Mars? We can use the many resources that have already been found on this planet, it could help us in many ways beyond space exploration, and it could even be a new place for us to live. That’s why I believe that the government should fund space exploration to Mars.
A manned mission to mars is too dangerous. First, it's cold. For instance, the average temperature is -61 degrees Fahrenheit. Since, it’s too cold it’s dangerous. Second, earth’s gravity harms the human body. For example, bones and muscles get weaker and the body produces less blood. Since, your bones and muscles get weaker and the body produces less blood this shows you that a manned mission to mars it too dangerous. Third, traveling is dangerous. For instance, traveling in a spaceship because minimeterorites can kill you. Since, minimeterorites can kill you this tells you that it's way too dangerous. In conclusion, a manned
Mars has a thin atmosphere, that would block some of the radiation meaning only light shielding would be required to protect the populace living there. The average person living on Mars would only take in an average of 11 millisieverts (mSv) a year, much less than the international space agencies maximum of 1000 mSv (Seedhouse). This means that the it could be safe to work and live on mars as long a six years before exceeding safe radiation levels. With the presence of water and it being safe from radiation the main problem a population would have is producing food. The study on PLOS one proved that the Moon had vary little chance of growing food however mars is quite the opposite. In some cases plants such as tomatoes, carrots, and rye actually grew and lasted better in the simulated Martian soil than in the Earths (Wamelink). This means that even though the soil might be devoid of life now, it has the capability to grow and sustain a population, allowing the future possibility of a Mars mission to be a possibility. Furthermore, proving that a Mars mission could be independent from Earth, and not have to rely on shipments of the basic requirements to survive. NASA has proven it wants to go to mars however such a large undertaking comes at a cost, and it is one that NASA just cannot afford it at the
Mars is our next best hope in life on another planet. Because of science mankind can grow and harvest plants in the modified mars soil, make a thick warm atmosphere, and drink no frozen mars water. Mankind can grow and flourish more as a species with this idea of colonizing mars. With more scientific advancements we can colonize mars and we will colonize mars.
There have been many doubts about whether or not people should travel to Mars. However, the United States should lead a mission to send humans to Mars because it will lead to advances in science and technology, Mars has water resources,
With Mars being so far, it would make delivering such necessities as food or medicine extremely difficult. Planetary exploration of Mars has been one of NASA's goals ever since the U.S civilian space program was started, which was in 1958. Mariner 9 was the first spacecraft to orbit another planet in 1971; after time NASA had recorded obscured Mars features. This mission gave NASA a better understanding when it comes to what it would take if a man were to travel to
When you first consider the prospect of a mars colony, the first things that come to mind are only the positive outcomes. Only when you look deeper into this expidition do you start to see the enormous cost and extreme dangers associated with traveling to this planet. What people also fail to realize or comprehend are the political and socio-economic repercussions of furthering our advancement to colonizing the red planet. As a nation in this day and age, I do not think we should undergo a full scale colonization of mars. While this prospect is an optimistic and hopeful vision, we have issues that need to be resolved on our own planet before we start to inhabit another, lest the dilemmas of our homeworld should follow us to mars.
Going to a Mars is an idea that is heavily debated in society and whether it is worth all of the government dollars to pursue a mission like this. The concept that will be explained is the idea of colonizing mars, as well as the various effects that it would bring upon humanity. This will includes issues such as Mars’ weather, how we plan on getting there, and what the cost to travel there will be. Past endeavors when it comes to space travel will also be discussed The benefits to humanity will also be discussed, and how having people on Mars may protect the human race if a global catastrophe were to occur.
Starting with Mars being too dangerous. Colonists could be exposed to radiation which can result in cancer, brain damage, tumors, sickness, or death. Secondly, Mars has a lower gravity than Earth which means over time colonists would lose bone mass, have a weaker immune system, and have a weaker heart and body. Lastly, colonists would be in a closed environment for a long periods of time which could lead to mental problems according to NASA and Mars One.
An alternative proposition to make Mars suitable for human habitation is terraforming Mars; to deliberately change it’s environment to provide Earth-like ecosystems and that are suitable for humans. Terraforming Mars would be a long time in the future, it would take more than 50,000 years to terraform Mars if we started now. Other sources state that “it would be hundreds of years before the thin Martian atmosphere could be transformed into an oxygen-rich cradle for life” (Livescience.com). Turning Mars’s cold atmosphere into a warm one, having a thick carbon dioxide atmosphere with oxygen for humans to breathe, and restoring its habitable state, is possible. And there is no reason to think that Mars is sterile or even hostile to life forms,
Doeden stated, “Estimates place the cost of a crewed Moon mission at $100 billion. A crewed Mars mission could cost five times that much” (Doeden 40). The U.S. is already trillions of dollars in debt, and a mission to a possibly uninhabitable planet would just add to that toll. Doeden describes the alternatives to the money spent on the Mars endeavor on page 40. Many potential investors could find fault with funding such a venture, considering they could argue that our country has other existing problems that could use the funding of a half-trillion dollars more so than on a single mission to Mars.
Humans can expect to face some major challenges on an expedition to Mars. It has been proven that humanity can travel in space for over two years. Cumulatively, Sergei Constantinovich Krikalev, a Russian cosmonaut, has spent over eight-hundred and three days in Earth orbit (Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center, 2005). The expedition to Mars would require the crew to endure a six month journey to the planet, a year of living on the planet, and a six months journey back to Earth. Russian cosmonaut, Valery V. Polyakoz, clocking in at four-hundred and thirty-eight days for just one stay in Earth orbit, shows humanity is capable of a twelve month round trip to Mars (Schwirtz, 2009). Earth's orbit has provided some benefits to space exploration, like the magnetic field from cosmic radiation, and the proximity to Earth if an emergency were to arise (Jones, 2009). The further humans travel away from Earth the greater the risks become. The major risks to human health on a flight to Mars, living on Mars, and returning to Earth are: radiation exposure, biological problems induced by weightlessness, spacecraft malfunctions, and psychological problems brought on by isolation.
There are many reasons that space exploration should continue. If Earth ever becomes too overpopulated or over polluted, then perhaps people can move to Mars. The world population in 1970 was approximately 4 billion people, and is currently nearly 6 billion people. The world population in 2015 is estimated to be 7 billion people. There is a possibility that there are useful resources on Mars. Scientists have found ice and some other clues, such as craters, volcanoes, and valleys, that have led them to believe that there was once life on Mars, and they believe that sometime in the future, should planet Earth need to be evacuated, humans will be able to live there (Jakosky 142). Many of the rocks on Mars appear to have been formed by gasses, breathable by humans and other creatures. A process called terraforming will allow astronauts to make use of the resources that are on the planet and create an atmosphere that will support life. One method for terraforming is that scientists would convert the gaseous rocks back into gasses, and use gas-eating organisms to eat the gas, which results in the formation of other gasses. If these organisms continue the cycle, then Mars would have a stable atmosphere for humans to live in (Getz 39).