Now that the colonies have power, the next issue, and arguably the most important one, needs to be tackled: creating food. The food provided by NASA can only last so long, and supply drops can takes months to arrive if Mars is on the optimal position, and well over a year if it is not. Because of this, colonists need a way to ensure that they have a sustainable and sufficient source of food, so they remain properly nourished and do not starve to death. This is the exact problem seen in the popular film, and the novel it was based on, The Martian. To surmount this obstacle, Mark Watney (the title character) uses his extensive knowledge of botany to grow potatoes in the Martian soil, using his own waste as fertilizer. While the book and movie …show more content…
There is no denying that simply reaching Mars, let alone colonizing it, is a very expensive and dangerous mission, with no guarantee of success. Lynda Williams, a Master of science and physics teacher at Santa Rosa Junior College, is one such skeptic. While she acknowledges the fact that man’s time on Earth is finite, Williams (2010), in her article “Irrational Dreams of Space Colonization,” says that “we have five billion years, plus or minus a few hundred million, to plan our extraterrestrial escape” (p. 4). Williams argues that the only real, immediate threats that the Earth is faced with are the destruction of its environment by climate change and warfare and depletion of natural resources. This brings up a question of morals and ethics: “should we put our resources into developing human colonies ... or should we focus all of our energies on solving and mitigating the problems that create these threats on Earth?” (Williams, 2010, p. 5). Ultimately, it is a question of ensuring the future of humanity on another world versus maintaining the planet that humanity currently …show more content…
Fortunately, if the effort pays off, humanity could have a new home after Earth is no longer habitable. While the criticisms do bring valid points as to the difficulties of space travel and colonization, they can be overcome with mankind’s technology, the resources already present on Mars, and old-fashioned human ingenuity. India has developed a method to drastically decrease the cost of space missions, and SpaceX has successfully re-launched a previously used rocket; with their contributions, a Mars mission no longer has to break the bank. Thanks to NASA, colonists will be able to sustain themselves for a considerable amount of time using oxygenators and water reclaimers, ensuring they have breathable air and clean water. Pockets of geothermal energy beneath the surface will provide the key to powering a large colony long enough for nuclear plants to be established. Finally, plants can not only be grown in Martian soil once the proper nutrients have been added, but those plants will thrive in an atmosphere with a high CO2 content, which can be controlled with pressurized greenhouses. Colonizing Mars will be no easy task, but because of the contributions of scientists across the world, it is a task that is no longer considered
In conclusion, colonizing Mars is a terrible idea There is no known natural source of water, Once you get there you cannot come back , and If you get sick, the astronauts
Most of the mistakes made on Earth would not be repeated again on Mars. Mars should be colonized, as with the Moon. Inhabiting giant asteroids, other planets and moons and space stations in constant orbit around planets and moons would help solve the problem of overcrowding and world hunger. While it'll be extremely risky, expensive and take many years, but colonizing Mars will be a major factor in the long run. They are almost certain that it will happen eventually if all goes well, and I'm at least sure that it is possible. Space exploration is getting better and cheaper all the time. We still have to develop a lot of technology to be in a position where it is actually possible. Once we are at that stage, it will be relatively easy to go on and colonize the rest of the planets and moons within this solar system. Hopefully one day this will lead us to a point where we can move on to other solar systems and allow our evolutionary chain to expand and continue throughout the Universe. Earth will not be around forever. The main advantage to colonizing Mars is that we, as a species, we will survive the end of the world on Earth. The surface area of Mars is the same as the land area of Earth so that is a doubling of the available land for human use. Physical strength might well be reduced, but in a lower gravity environment, there will be less day to day stress on your body, so your organs should
On the contrary, opponents of NASA may speculate that overpopulation or ruining our planet will not occur, therefore the time, effort, and money spent on exploring Earth-like planets is useless. In actuality, overpopulation and the diminishing of Earth’s resources and health are working hand in
Some people believe that having a single planet is risky and we should have an alternate planet to escape. An entrepreneur, Elon Musk, has built a rocket company, on which in the future a spaceship would bring settlers to mars. The settlers, according to this entrepreneur, would serve as protection against earth’s extinction
The topic of going to mars is highly discussed among scholars and ordinary people due to the reason that it is believed that Mars can support human life. Due to the fact, that global warming is on the rise has caused many scientists to believe that eventually the earth’s ecosystem will plummet, making life on earth for humans impossible. Many scientists argue that extra research on mars is needed due to the fact that the human race would eventually be forced to migrate outside of earth, if there is to be a continuation of the human race. However, the funding for such research is immense as it is, and it is projected that this “budget will increase by 20% by the government within the next few years.” This astounding increase in budget, has led to many uncertainties as to why the government funds such an expensive research for humans to leave earth when that money could be spent on the problems relating to global warming. Here on earth it is a fact that global warming is a serious issue regarding the future of the planet. Therefore, the government funds should be allocated to research ways to emit less carbon dioxide or to try and find cleaner and safer ways to create energy for the growing human population. Another reason to stop funding the research and exploration of mars is that most space exploration is caused by human curiosity. Human curiosity has led multi-million dollar institutions like NASA to explore the deep wonders of the world and discover new technologies which changed the world. Despite, the curiosity and the technologies that exploring the universe has brought, this interest is extremely expensive and time consuming. At times the curiosity led space exploration projects were made to look like a patriotic act due to political reasons. As a result, these projects were believed to be well-worth spent since it brought great
One large project that is being pursued is colonizing mars with a human population. This will mold the future and newer generations. It can make us question the future and what lies ahead. It has been said that it will take no more than 50 years to fulfill the colonization of mars.
Many feel that the United States should lead a crewed mission to discover the planet of Mars. Mars One, a settlement, has started a goal to initiate human life on the Red Planet. However, are humans really capable for Mars? There are two sides of the argument. Many are agreeing on starting the mission while others are contracted by the idea. I, for one, believe the mission should not take place. Difficulties NASA has to overcome, the safety of the trip, and the costs of the whole mission are many of the opposing factors of starting a journey to the Red Planet.
Overpopulation and sustainability are growing concerns for the future of Earth. Time is running out on Earth as population continually increases. Such a large population will put a strain on Earth’s resources and environment. Fortunately, there are many ways in which people are working to lessen and slow these issues on Earth. Despite their efforts, it is still evident that a future on Earth will be a precarious one, so alternate options are being explored. Elon Musk, founder of Space X, has proposed a plan to colonize Earth’s neighboring planet, Mars. NASA, Mars One, and several other corporations have also expressed similar interest in colonizing this planet. Mars would not be a replacement for earth, but instead it would
The NASA space program has had enormous impacts on the world. Thanks to NASA the United States has explored thousands of celestial bodies throughout the galaxy with telescopes, rovers, and in the moon 's case, people. In the next decade, NASA plans to expand the United State’s human exploration to more than just the moon. A Mars mission has been in NASA’s eye for quite a while now and with technology advancing every day, they feel it is time to send men and women to the red planet. Some believe the journey could prove too dangerous for humans; however, through research and development scientists can find ways to safely transport astronauts to and from Mars. This is a necessary step in the country 's advancements in health, technology and
If the Earth had some sort of mass destruction and was no longer usable we would need somewhere to go. And Mars is the closest place to go. If we didn’t go to Mars and save what we have then we will soon run out of resources here on Earth and then we will have nothing left. It is better to have everything done now than later when we can’t and don’t really have a chance to get anybody over there to start that new world.
Why should humans colonize Mars? Humans should colonize Mars for their own well being. If humans want their future offsprings to be alive and well throughout the years then they need to find out how to colonize Mars and they need
Mars, one of Earth's neighboring planets, has been studied since the beginning of mankind. More recently, however, the United States of America has been considering the human colonization of Mars. A manned mission to Mars is something humans need to pursue, regardless the price. A human colonization on Mars could provide the research to create another civilization outside of Earth, could show us what might happen to Earth in the future, and could provide itself as a space station/planet-to-planet trading port to launch rockets off of. A manned mission to Mars is a controversial subject; however, it should be pursued due to the evidence from past missions, the current evidence being found, and the pros outnumbering the cons.
Humans have always been interested in the idea of exploring space. the scientists, astronauts and researchers have spent decades looking for life on other planets. Mars is the most favorable place in the solar system, other than Earth, for human habitation. It is also the closest planet to Earth. Even though some researchers claim that exploring Mars will help us to understand the Earth better, and a manned mission to Mars is better for humanity, opposing sending a manned mission to Mars for these reasons: because the cost of the exportation is not worth the risk involved. this exploration will have a negative effect on Americans. Mars exploration should be halted because of the cost to the economy, the risk to society and the lack
The concept of space exploration was first introduced to the American public in 1961 when President John F. Kennedy famously stood before congress and vowed that America would put a man on the moon “within the decade.” With hopes of defeating the Soviet Union in the “Space Race” and gaining a leg-up in the Cold War, NASA funding reached its all-time high in 1965-1966 when about four percent of the federal budget was devoted to exploring space. Since then however, funding dedicated to exploring space has nose-dived to about one-half of a percent of the federal budget (Tyson), with plans to cut that figure by an additional $260 million in 2017 (cite NASA funding cuts). Experts in the space-sciences field argue that increased funding in space exploration would re-ignite the American economy and return America to the scientific prominence it was once known for, while, on the other end of the spectrum, naysayers suggest that exploring space is an economic sink-hole that the United States can no longer afford to deposit to given its own earth-bound troubles.
Carl Sagan once said “every planetary civilization will be endangered by impacts from space, every surviving civilization is obliged to become spacefaring--not because of exploratory or romantic zeal, but for the most practical reason imaginable: staying alive... If our long-term survival is at stake, we have a basic responsibility to our species to venture to other worlds.” The National Aeronautics and Space Administration or NASA, is executing Sagan’s words every day. President Dwight D. Eisenhower created NASA in 1958 with the purpose of peaceful rather than military space exploration and research to contribute to society. Just 11 years after the creation, NASA put Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin on the moon, the first humans to