I'll admit, 15 years ago I was very excited about the possibility that my future child could some day live on Mars... but despite all of the technical challenges and the costs and everything else associated with it, it's the fact that your air and water would be commonitites owned by a billionaire is what is going to keep me (and my family) firmly grounded on Earth.
this post was submitted on 30 Jul 2025
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Mars (Planet)
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i do hope that democracy prevails. of course, with fascism on the rise in the US today, it doesn't seem that way. though haven't always the most progressive countries in the world had the most democracy? and what could be more progressive than going to mars?
It's true that humanity won't settle mars anytime soon. But you're missing an important element: Mars gives people inspiration and makes them look up. It doesn't matter whether they reach their goal, as long as the inspiration makes them dream, and that initself improves people's quality of life.
It’s true that humanity won’t settle mars anytime soon.
Unfortunately, not everyone actually agrees about that: https://www.spacex.com/humanspaceflight/mars
But you’re missing an important element: Mars gives people inspiration and makes them look up.
I'm certainly not missing that element, nor are the authors of the book that this post is about (or the author of the article in my other post in this community). When I was a child I too aspired to be a space traveler, or even colonist. I'm still a NASA appreciator. And did you notice who my lemmy avatar is? Anyway, eventually I grew up.
It doesn’t matter whether they reach their goal, as long as the inspiration makes them dream, and that initself improves people’s quality of life.
It does matter when achieving that goal becomes a serious priority, to the detriment of others.
The belief that Mars colonization is something worth attempting in our lifetimes is not harmless at all:
All of the tech we’d need to even get to mars would be sufficient to sustain human life in space, where we’d be more comfortable and don’t have to terraform.
Personally I think we should skip mars and get to the asteroid belt.
beltalowda
You don't even have to spin them up. Just drill a big hole through the asteroid - maybe with concentrated sunlight - and build a small O'Neill cylinder inside.
It's not entirely the case.
All of the tech we’d need to even get to mars would be sufficient to sustain human life in space
Yes, we could sustain human life in space for a while, as we do during the trip to Mars, but the problem is that supplies (especially food and oxygen, and probably water) will eventually run out and have to be replenished.
In outer space, there's a vacuum and so, materials can't be sourced from there. They have to be sourced from a planet or another object that provides a large supply of materials. Mars offers atmospheric CO~2~ and water (in the form of hydrated rocks), which can be used to produce biomass (food) and oxygen (through electrolysis). So it's preferable to just floating in outer space.
Which is why I think we should skip Mars and head straight for the asteroid belt. Plenty of resources, no toxic dust.