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Originally Posted by iTaliAN_ICe
I'd love to find other intelligent life out there, but we should seriously focus on developing and perfecting technologies that we as a species could use, like terraforming.
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I definitely agree, our planet is wonderful, but it is not infinite.
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Originally Posted by Bradgriff
I saw something on PBS a while back about terforming Mars. About half the scientists they interviewed thought it may work, and the other half said never. Very few people though the Wright brothers were sane so I guess there off to a little better start.
In 2001 space odyssey they had that big wheel shaped craft. When it's spinning, the centrifugal force could simulate gravity, and if it's super huge you could cram it full to the top with plants and they would create oxygen, then you just recycle and treat the H2O for the plants which of course would also....feed you
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This would also be amazing, its just the cost of the construction of such a structure would be quite large, though, like many renewable resources, it would most likely be just an up-front cost.
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Originally Posted by dahermit
There are huge obstacles that must be over come to allow teraforming Mars. It only has one-fourth the intensity of sunlight that Earth has. There have been suggestions like: Installing a huge shinny foil collar around Mars in space to reflect sunlight onto the surface...I mighty big undertaking. If not that, how would we increase the light in order to support plant life (a must to increase the oxygen)?
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This is an extremely, considering we can spend so much on arms and armies, undertake-able task. We could definitely, with some genetic modification on the plants, be able to plant organics on Mars. The Mirror Plan would be extremely expensive, but how about a solar power plant or something as such, or, if nobody cares about emitting a ton of CO2 into the Martian atmosphere, then we could just set up one of the most environmentally inefficient power plants that is available to us to help give the planet an atmosphere, and the plants CO2. Not coming from a scientist, but that idea sounds like the beginning of a possible plan for making Mars habitable.
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Originally Posted by Oregon Elephant
Any colonization of Mars that we can hope for, really is the science fiction of living in domes. You'll need the light, atmosphere, and warmth that you won't be able to get from the outside enviroment. So the population will be greatly capped, but it would work well for mining and research (just not living). But you can also do the same with Venus (even though it is more of a "fixer-upper").
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True, domes would definitely make the planets slightly habitable. As far as Mars goes, who said we couldn't do a larger scale biosphere experiment, with occasional resupply missions from Earth, the prospect of living in domes on Mars is quite visible. We already have the technology available to get to Mars, the only problem in the foreseeable future is that we need a way to get building materials to Mars and find a way to get back from Mars. This may bring on a new round of the highly dangerous Apollo missions of the 60's and 70's, but if it , as it should, brings us the capability to sustain life on Mars, then so be it. I personally, and I believe many others agree, believe that many would be willing to take on another series of missions like the Apollo missions in order to help further and prolong the human race.
The research and mining capabilities of the domes would allow initial construction of living quarters for the initial colonists, but, over time, they could add more and more living areas, and attempt to start terraforming projects. The research being performed on the I.S.S. could be mimicked on Mars to see the planet's effects on people. The major problem I see is that at present times it would be hard to pack enough fuel to make it both to and back from Mars.
We could send robots to perform the initial construction of the first living habitats for colonists. They could construct a farming dome, which would be large, but sustainable, and a hotel-like structure that would serve as living quarters. Though the Martian nights are much colder than here on Earth, there could be certain building elements that were the most insulating and fire-resistant that are available.
After the first bout of robot construction, then we could send actual human beings to do more precise building. They could live in the initial structures built by the robots while they make better structures for more people and better methods of greening their areas. An area could be constructed as a forest, which could be used to help produce oxygen and foods. Another area as a farming area, where protein-rich foods could be grown. Of course, a well-balanced diet would have to be grown on Mars, but we can do it on Earth, we just have to adapt it for Mars!
