Time For A New Home? Colonising Mars

With plans to set up a permanent colony on the moon, the human race is finally realising its dreams of space colonization. But why stop at our nearest neighbour? Plans are already under way for much bolder schemes. The next step after the moon, and the goal of many a piece of science fiction, is to visit Mars. Unlike the moon, a human has yet to step foot on Mars, let alone consider setting up a permanent base there. Despite this, plans are already underway for the colonization of space. There are many reasons for wanting to create settlements on other bodies in the solar system, ranging from short term concerns over the survival of our own ecosystem to the long term problem of overcrowding. Whether or not we have to deal with these problems soon, space exploration will continue to go ahead.

Mars is the fourth planet out from the sun, orbiting at an average of 228 million kilometres from the sun. Our obsession with Mars has nothing to do with its similarity to Earthat less than a sixth of the size it is tiny in comparison, with a gravitational field 2.7 times weaker. The reason that we are so intrigued by Mars lies in our hope that somewhere on the planet water exists in liquid form, and where there is water, or so it is hoped, there will be life. We aren’t talking little green men but the beginnings of life. Even finding single celled organisms on another planet would have far reaching consequences for society and religion.

The story surrounding Mars and water started in 1877 when Gionvanni Schiaparelli, using his 22cm telescope, named some features on Mars’ surface canali. This was later mistranslated as canals, leading to mass speculation about what, or indeed who, had made them! We now know these to be an optical allusion but recent data shows that there may be free flowing water on the surface of Mars as you read this. It is no surprise then that, second to the Earth, Mars has the largest number of artificial satellites with four probes currently orbiting it and two exploratory vehicles on its surface. It is these four satellites and the two explorers that are the first step towards the colonization of Mars. They are giving us detailed information about the conditions and geography of the planet, which will tell us what we will need to endure as well as information such as places to land and location of resources.

There are two main considerations for the colonization of our neighbour. First, and most immediate, how do we get there? And second, once we are there, how do we survive? Both of these pose major difficulties; the furthest that man has travelled is to the moon, a mere 385 thousand kilometres away. This is a large distance by everyday standards but pales in comparison to the distance to Mars. At its closest to Earth it is a staggering 117 million kilometres awaythat’s 304 times further than the distance between the Earth and the Moon. Getting there poses a whole new type of challenge. Using present technology, which allows us to reach speeds of 7.7 km per second, it would take just under six months to cross the distance between the two planets. This in itself poses many technical problems. Everything would have to be on board: six months worth of fuel, food and air. And that’s without even worrying about the return trip

The second problem is living there. Power wouldn’t be much of an issueboth solar and nuclear are well tested and reliable sources of power. The real problem arises from the need to overcome the conditions on the planet. The average surface temperature is -63°C with the minimum going down to -140°C: less than hospitable. There is virtually no atmosphere, let alone one that is breathable, and no magnetic field to protect us from harmful rays from the sun. These problems can be overcome by living in shielded complexes, but that does not solve the issues of long term food and breathable air supply. Even if we manage to build a base on Mars there are still more problems. The effects of long term exposure to a weak gravitational field on human life are, as yet, unknown. And what happens if something goes wrong? Six months is a long time for a rescue operation.

The next two articles in this series will explore these problems further and also look at the possible ways of overcoming them. But in the meantime as every day passes our dreams of colonising Mars become more of a reality. George W. Bush outlined a manned mission to Mars as a long term goal in America’s Vision for Space Exploration. The European Space Agency have set firmer goals of landing a human on the surface of Mars by as early as 2030! I hope that within our lifetimes missions to Mars won’t lie solely in the realm of science fiction.

Mat Conway | My Bio & Articles