Things You Need to Know Before Living on Mars
With no easy answers, space travel is becoming a popular topic for discussion and future plans may include ideas from the public as well
Mars is the most Earth-like planet in our solar system. It has polar ice caps, seasons, and a 24-hour day/night cycle just like Earth. Its thin atmosphere means that it’s relatively unprotected from radiation, but also means that its surface temperature can range between -190°C to 27°C (-310°F to 80°F). It’s got volcanoes (sort of), mountains (kind of), dunes (in places), and flowing water (maybe). And yet, we know so little about what it would be like living there for extended periods. Wouldn’t you want to learn more?
The Red Planet may be our nearest neighbor, but it remains one of the least understood planets in our solar system. It is never directly visible to the naked eye, and only a handful of rovers explore its mysterious surface. By comparison, we’ve visited Venus with more than 30 probes and Jupiter with over 70 (and counting). Mars has become another victim of the classic ‘curse’ — our best images and stories are always about the Earth.
We need to start asking and answering hard questions to avoid making the same mistakes we did when we first started exploring our planet.
What Will You Eat?
The first question is: What will you eat? The average distance between Earth and Mars is 225 million kilometers (140 million miles), which means it could take as many as nine months to get there. That’s a long time to carry all your food with you, so growing things on board might be the only option. However, that will require a lot of power, and it’s unlikely that they would be able to grow food without some form of lighting inside the habitat. That means extra fuel, extra weight, and increased demand for life support systems.
What if you’re not planning on taking all your food with you? The International Space Station (ISS) has already attempted to grow crops in space, but it hasn’t been entirely successful. Plants are generally unable to receive the same amount of light and heat that they would get on Earth, so there is little hope for an apple tree or anything larger than a pea plant. Growing crops could help air quality inside the habitat, as plants release oxygen and absorb carbon dioxide.
“We need to start asking and answering some hard questions now if we want to avoid making the same mistakes we did when we first started exploring our planet.”
What Will You Wear?
The next question is: What will you wear? The environment on Mars is not kind to humans; it’s relatively unprotected from radiation, and its average temperature is -60°C (-76°F). It would be impractical for someone to walk around outside in a spacesuit all of the time, so Elon Musk will need to develop some pressurized suit that makes use of self-contained heating and cooling systems. A fabric similar to polypropylene could also be an option. It would provide warmth (when charged with oxygen) and reduce the effects of dust storms, which can change the atmospheric pressure on Mars by as much as 30%.
The typical Mars suit would not be able to protect the wearer completely, nor would it provide enough oxygen for more than a few hours. This lack of protection means that you could only go outside during daylight hours or on days when there isn’t much wind. The dust in the air could also cause problems for moving parts inside the rover, so there is a risk of damage when driving through it.
It’s uncertain how much this would impact space exploration activities on Mars. Still, we will undoubtedly need to consider before planning any long-term occupation or construction projects.
What About Your Commute?
The third question is: What vehicle will you use to commute? You can’t exactly walk to the local supermarket, so humans on Mars will need some form of vehicle. The typical rover won’t handle more than a few inches of Martian dust (<1mm), as it would clog up the sensitive moving parts. They would also need to develop some rover that can stand up to stronger winds, reaching speeds of up to 100mph (161km/h).
It may be difficult for humans to transport building materials very far, but several companies are already working on heavy-duty vehicles to help them with their construction projects.
“The typical rover won’t be able to handle more than a few inches of Martian dust (<1mm), as it would clog up the sensitive moving parts.”
SpaceX has already tested its Red Dragon vehicle, which will be capable of landing on Mars with over 12 tons of cargo inside. The crew can then use it to transport the equipment and supplies needed for future construction projects.
If you are planning to live on Mars, there are a few things that you need to know before making the big decision. The first thing is whether or not anyone can get there in the first place. That’s a long time to carry all your food with you, so growing things on board might be the only option, but it will require more power and may negatively impact the air quality inside of habitats.
What if you’re not taking all your food? It seems like plants would also pose solutions as they release oxygen and absorb carbon dioxide, which could lead to better air quality inside spaceships or living quarters; this has yet to be tested out by experts.
Another critical question is what vehicle people would use for commuting between destinations — the typical rover won’t handle more than a few inches of Martian dust (<1mm), as it would clog up the sensitive moving parts. A solution for this may be to use self-contained heating and cooling systems in pressurized suits, similar to polypropylene, providing warmth (when charged with oxygen) and reducing dust storms.
The final question is when someone could go outside in the suit; it’s uncertain how much this would impact space exploration activities on Mars. Still, we will undoubtedly need to consider these things before planning any long-term occupations or construction projects. With no easy answers, space travel is becoming a popular topic for discussion and future plans may include ideas from the public as well.
