I wanted to look at the case against Mars; three reasons humans should leave the red planet alone. Due to its proximity and relative familiarity, Earth's Moon is frequently discussed as a target for colonization. At the same time, it can also serve as a laboratory in space - a purely scientific enterprise, existing with the help of a regular supply of necessary resources from Earth. (Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech) Book of Mars: $22.99 at Magazines Direct. Unmanned supply craft may be practical with little technological advance, even crossing 1/2 billion kilometers of cold vacuum. For more details . "Space Colonization Top 3 Pros and Cons." The Artemis Project designed a plan to colonize Europa, one of Jupiter's moons. Between melting the polar ice caps, slowly creating an atmosphere, and then engineering the environment to have . The discovery of life on Mars would not matter much one way or the other. That all being said, assume most 'wild places' as having strong 'right to exist as is' - which could be some or most of Earth, when other demands are lessened, in a due process, ideally. Author and journalist William E. Burrows and biochemist Robert Shapiro proposed a private project, the Alliance to Rescue Civilization, with the goal of establishing an off-Earth backup of human civilization. Present-day launch costs are very high$25,000 to $78,000 per kilogram from Earth to Low Earth Orbit (LEO). 2019, Fred Kennedy, To Colonize Space or Not to Colonize: That Is the Question (For All of Us), forbes.com, Dec. 18, 2019, Matthias Dpfner, Jeff Bezos Reveals What It's Like to Build an Empire and Why He's Willing to Spend $1 Billion a Year to Fund the Most Important Mission of His Life, businessinsider.com, Apr. The most important reason for space colonization is the continued existence of the human race in the face of a catastrophic event. 5. Over the next six decades, NASA would launch space stations, land rovers on Mars, and orbit Pluto and Jupiter, among other accomplishments. Some anti-space arguments have gone so far as to suggest that space colonization is a remnant of historical colonization, and the desire to conquer territory. Researchers in conservation biology have tended to adopt the "50/500" rule of thumb initially advanced by Franklin and Soule. Mankind has been dealing with challenges since the first days of its existence. The group returned to Earth on Apr. In popular culture, space travel dates back to at least the mid-1600s when Cyrano de Bergerac first wrote of traveling to space in a rocket. Colonizing other bodies in the solar system (or building our own orbiting habitats) is a way to create a "backup" of humanity that will survive no matter what happens to Earth. What is the value of space exploration? Managing Editor The literature for space colonization began in 1869, when Edward Everett Hale[9] wrote about an inhabited artificial satellite. NASA's Griffin: 'Humans Will Colonize the Solar System. As of Feb. 2020, Russian Valery Polyakov had spent the longest continuous time in space (437.7 days in 1994-1995 on space station Mir), followed by Russian Sergei Avdeyev (379.6 days in 1998-1999 on Mir), Russians Vladimir Titov and Musa Manarov (365 days in 1987-1988 on Mir), American Mark Vande Hei (355 days on ISS) Russian Mikhail Kornienko and American Scott Kelly (340.4 days in 2015-2016 on Mir and ISS respectively), and American Christina Koch (328 days in 2019-20 in ISS). They also note that, whatever the merits, human travel beyond the Solar System is not feasible in any reasonable time period. The Space Studies Institute was founded by Gerard K. O'Neill to fund the study of space habitats. Space colonization is important because humanity cannot stay on Earth forever if we are to survive as a species. Since the population increase is projected to continue, living space is and will remain an important need for the foreseeable future. The five Earth-Sun Lagrange points would totally eliminate eclipses, but only L1 and L2 would be reachable in a few days' time. We may have people living on the moons of Jupiter and other planets. And the majority (63%) stated NASAs top priority should be monitoring Earths climate, while only 18% said sending astronauts to Mars should be the highest priority and only 13% would prioritize sending astronauts to the Moon. It has been proposed that these materials could be used for the construction of space habitats for human settlement. But eventually, we should be able to construct space colonies [structures in free space rather than on a planet or moon], which could house millions. The dreamers, thinkers and explorers who decide to go to Mars will, by necessity, fuel unprecedented lateral innovations [that will solve problems on Earth]. [27], Briony Horgan, PhD, Assistant Professor of Planetary Science at Purdue University, explained that terraforming Mars is way beyond any kind of technology were going to have any time soon. [28], In one widely promoted plan, Mars needs to first be warmed to closer to Earths average temperature (from -60 C/-76 F to 15 C/59 F), which will take approximately 100 years. As we get closer to life on Mars, we have to start thinking about what its economy would look like and how that might affect the rest of us here on Earth. It may be possible to colonize the three farthest gas giants with "floating cities" in their atmospheres. Can Alternative Energy Effectively Replace Fossil Fuels? Should Humans Colonize Space? Communications to Mars suffer from significant delays due to the speed of light and the greatly varying distance between conjunction and oppositionthe lag would range between 7 and 44 minutesmaking real-time communication impractical. Their answers included the following points:[7], Louis J. Halle, formerly of the United States Department of State, wrote in Foreign Affairs (Summer 1980) that the colonization of space will protect humanity in the event of global nuclear warfare.[8]. Humans have time to explore and colonize space at the same time as we mend the effects of climate change on Earth. Alternatively, Lunar space elevators might be employed. Propellant launched from the Earth is likely to be prohibitively expensive for space colonization, even with improved space access costs. Now as to why depends on ones point of view. It is in my view a good idea to see if we can do this as one day Earth will not be livable and yes it is a very long time from now but one should learn now in order to do this in the future. By colonizing space, humankind could . The benefits to humanity created by the resources and knowledge create a moral obligation to colonize space. [22], Sheri Wells-Jensen, PhD, Associate Professor of English at Bowling Green State University, argues that the moral imperative goes even further than simple preservation: [W]e have a moral obligation to improve: that is, to colonize yes, but to do it better: to actively unthink systems of oppression that we know exist. After the Russians put the first person, Yuri Gagarin, in space on Apr. Students for the Exploration and Development of Space (SEDS) is a student organization founded in 1980 at. 50 Elon Musk's SpaceX plans to land two unmanned cargo ships on Mars in 2022. But deGrasse Tyson, who also hosts the show " StarTalk " on the National Geographic Channel, argues that space colonization could have a tremendous impact on civilization, potentially. For some it is the opportunity to gain new . While this is not the first time paying customers or non-astronauts have traveled to ISS (Russia has sold Soyuz seats), this is the first American mission and the first with no government astronaut corps members. Looking beyond the solar system, there are billions of potential suns with possible colonization targets. Space exploration gives us the chance to begin colonizing other locations, giving us hope that our species can survive. The moons of Mars have been proposed as targets for space colonization. Alternatively, the waste heat can be used to melt ice on the poles of a planet like Mars. We should colonize other habitable planets due to. https://www.britannica.com/story/pro-and-con-space-colonization. 3. Many design proposals have been made, with varying degrees of realism, by both science fiction authors and engineers. This article abides by terms of the Creative Commons CC-by-sa 3.0 License (CC-by-sa), which may be used and disseminated with proper attribution. With almost all of the space industry pining after colonization of Mars, the whataboutery of the long-term goal of colonization is a debate we all need to have, keeping in mind the best interest of the future of our species.The good news is that existing technologies will only improve with time, be it propulsion systems, power generation, or genetic engineering that help humans adapt better to . Certain NEOs may also contain some nitrogen. The clouds could be a possible source for the extraction of water. The fact that we have destroyed our home planet is prima facie evidence of this assertion. . 8, 2020, Mark Memmott, Last Space Shuttle Lands, Ending 30-Year Era, npr.org, July 21, 2011, Laurel Wamsley, Bezos vs. Branson: The Billionaire Space Race Lifts Off, npr.org, July 11, 2021, NASA, NASAs SpaceX Crew-2 Astronauts Headed to International Space Station, nasa.gov, Apr. It is sheer hubris to even consider the question of whether we should go or not go as if we are deciding which movie to see this weekend because we really are not in a position to make that choice What objective person would hire humanity to colonize a virgin planet, given its abysmal past performance in caring for the Earths ecosystem (overpopulation, climate change, mass extinctions)? [23]. This expansion is important because if something catastrophic were to happen to the . Jupiter would be less suitable for habitation due to its high gravity, escape velocity, and radiation. Explore George Dvorskys position that Humans Will Never Colonize Mars.. A large asteroid, the star going nova, or even a shift in the planetary climate could devastate humanity. Opponents say technophobia fuels debates about the internet making us stupid. And if we had a trillion humans, we would have a thousand Einsteins and a thousand Mozarts and unlimited, for all practical purposes, resources and solar power unlimited for all practical purposes. [25], Space, in particular, is connected to exploration and growth in the human imagination. The thin atmosphere also means that heat cannot be retained at the surface. Technological advancement into space can exist alongside conservation efforts on Earth. In space settlements, a relatively small, closed ecological system must recycle or import all the nutrients without "crashing.". The Space Settlement Institute is searching for ways to make space colonization happen in our lifetimes. If your thoughts have not changed, list two to three ways your better understanding of the other side of the issue now helps you better argue your position. The Artemis Project plans to set up a private lunar surface station. Robots are hard and nobody gets upset when they die. [34], Bioethicist George Dvorsky summarized the hostile nature of Mars: The Red Planet is a cold, dead place, with an atmosphere about 100 times thinner than Earths. . [32], Further, as Linda Billings, PhD, Research Professor at George Washington University, noted, all life on Earth evolved to live in Earth conditions If humans cant figure out how to adapt to, or arrest, changing conditions on Earth then I cant see how humans could figure out how to adapt to a totally alien environment. [23], If humans have the technology, knowledge, and ability to transform an uninhabitable planet, moon, or other place in space into an appealing home for humans, then surely we have the technology, knowledge, and ability to fix the problems weve created on Earth. Humans have made a mess of Earth. To access extended pro and con arguments, sources, and discussion questions about whether humans should colonize space, go to ProCon.org. Curiosity is the embryo of all sciences; without it . Jeff Bezos, Founder of Amazon.com who traveled to space in 2021, asserted that exploring space would result in expanded human genius: The solar system can easily support a trillion humans. Space + Science World Africa . And even the worst catastrophes are unlikely to leave this world as hostile to humanity as a planet with no life, no atmosphere,. [24], Humans are not a species of stagnation. 3. Rockets or mass drivers can perhaps be installed on asteroids to direct their paths along safe courses. Building colonies in space would require a combination of many factors, including access to space, food, construction materials, energy, transportation, communications, life support, simulated gravity (using steady circular rotation), entertainment, and radiation protection. Jeff Bezos followed on July 20, 2021, accompanied by his brother, Mark, and both the oldest and youngest people to go to space: 82-year-old Wally Funk, a female pilot who tested with NASA in the 1960s but never flew, and Oliver Daemen, an 18-year-old student from the Netherlands. Space can be colonized and provide Earth with the. Colonizing space is one method of doing so. Launched by President Trump in 2017, NASAs ongoing Artemis program intends to return humans to the Moon by 2024, landing the first woman on the lunar surface. 23, 2021, Devin Coldewey, Virgin Galactic and Richard Branson Celebrate Launch of First Passengers into Space, techcrunch.com, July 11, 2021, Jonathan Amos, Sir Richard Branson Takes off on 'Extraordinary' Space Flight, bbc.com, July 11, 2021, Marcia Dunn, Jeff Bezos Blasts into Space on Own Rocket: Best Day Ever!, apnews.com, July 21, 2021, NASA, Who Was Alan Shepard?, nasa.gov, Aug. 7, 2017, Paul Rincon, Christina Koch: Nasa Astronaut Sets New Female Space Record, bbc.com, Feb. 6, 2020, NASA, International Space Station Facts and Figures, nasa.gov, May 13, 2021, Pew Research Center, Majority of Americans Believe It Is Essential That the U.S.
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