Humans have been surviving off the resources of the Earth since creation, we are continuously thriving off all our resources without replacing them. One day all these resources will run out and we will have to seek refuge on other sustainable environments that will be able to provide us with nourishment and sustainable resources, this could be the the sea or even Mars. The main reason for trying to colonise a planet such as Mars is due to humans overpopulating and wasting valuable resources. It would also contribute towards the improvement of modern day sciences and technologies by giving us hope and experience. By gaining such a step in exploring the universe this could change our idea of life as we know it.
There are two main competitors in the race to Mars, however, both of their main goals is to gain the achievement of sending humans to Mars. This is only a small start to the beginning of a hugely beneficial task of colonising Mars. The two main competitors in the race are Nasa lead by Charles Frank Bolden Jr. and the SpaceX project run by Elon Musk. By colonising Mars we gain potential resources and knowledge that can help us identify a greater part of the universe.(Sarah Appleton, 2016) I do however believe that instead of basing the projects as a competition that they should come together, co-operate and work towards one final end goal.
One of the articles that I read on the decision between visiting or settling (Jennifer Harrison, 2016) had very strong opinions about neither colonising or visiting but mainly focused on the journey of how to get there. One major point that I found was an important factor was that even if we were able to get humans to Mars would they be able to survive without a sustainable amount of resources? Would modern day technology be able to provide enough space for resources such as food, oxygen, water and other major essentials on the trip? If so would there be shelter in case of dangerous aspects like storms and storage for belongings? There have been thoughts of launching robots to build underground bunkers in order to provide space for laboratories or to create living areas for the Martians, but in my opinion that is not a possibility so far. On the basis of our technology we are not yet advanced enough to build robots that allow bunkers to be created as we have barely any control of the Mars rover so this would be a futuristic idea. Another problem would be finding volunteers to participate in such an experience. There is no guarantee of survival or even arriving at Mars and much less the possibility of coming back. There is no current technology that could provide a possibility of a relaunch while on another planet and therefore there is no possibility of returning. This could sound very unpleasant and demotivating for people and is it even fair to send people on a suicide mission.
From a scientific perspective, if we were able to achieve such science would gain massive advantage and this could provide hope for future space travel. Red Colony (Alex Moore, Brian Rudo, Jim Keener, 2006) which is a website I read has many interesting points on why colonising is best, for example, they feel that it is similar to the Earth in so many different ways that it would be easy to adapt. Also there are many unknown scientific secrets that could help benefit our understanding, it would provide a substantial amount of land producing economic value and it would provide a stable environment where humans can live. These are some interesting points, however, I agree more with science20 as their arguments look more realistic and they provide better support and reasons for their answers. They also provide recent information whereas Red Colony provides topics from 2006. I therefore am against colonisation as science20 (Robert Walker, 2013) argued the extreme cold temperature would have a demoralising and unpleasant effect. They argued that even the slightest or smallest accident could be fatal as if your suit is punctured or you cut yourself then your body will react differently or it won���t react at all allowing deathly results. We wouldn���t be able to produce vegetation and so we would run out of resources. There would be no facilities similar to those we have at home, for example, petrol stations and shops so you would have to provide for yourself. From my own perspective I would also think that if we colonised Mars we would ruin the environment and atmosphere like we do with the Earth preventing accurate results for tests and experiments done and this could limit our expectations of the universe as well as ruin yet another planet.
If we look at some benefits and disadvantages of settling vs visiting we should be able to gain a better perspective.
Settling Benefits –
We would be able to experience the weather and seasons changing on a longer time scale and in person allowing an enhanced perspective.
We could possibly create an environment that might support production of crops or other needed resources, this is not however a guarantee.
Settling Disadvantages –
If we were to try to settle and the trip failed we would have achieved nothing.
We would have limited space and limited equipment so tests could not be as accurate as needed and we would not be able to send the data back to Earth for accurate tests with high quality equipment.
We would be new to the environment and would not have knowledge on where to settle giving us a disadvantage and we may be placed in dangerous areas putting risk on survival.
Visiting Benefits –
By only visiting this creates more of a realistic experience and trip and less provisions will be needed to be taken on the trip.
We would be able to bring back physical samples collected to be tested by a higher quality equipment based on planet Earth and ensure accurate results.
We are able to analyse the change of the human body by looking at the improvement/detriment caused by the new environment.
We would gain a better understanding of the best habitable areas for future decisions on whether to colonise.
Visiting Disadvantages –
There is no possibility of completing long term experiments.
We gain less experience from the trip.
We are unable to experience the physical features of the environment such as the seasons or weather.
In some sci-fi movies like the Martian it shows us that with the right equipment and technology it is possible to create a self sustainable living environment that could potentially provide sustenance for your whole family to live on. I feel that if we were able to go to Mars we could potentially colonise there and could survive off sustainable living, however, the temperature and environmental conditions would not be pleasant and the pollution caused by us humans would not be of beneficial help as it would influence experiments done on Mars. It would also affect the data produced by the experiment leading to inaccurate results and conclusions as well as all the pollution that would affect Mars and the environment leaving it to ruin.
Due to Mars being a completely different and unusual planet unexplored by humans it could also provide information and evidence of possible extraterrestrial signs or could prove that there are signs of intelligence out there.
A huge concern for projects as big and expensive as these is the outcome and whether the outcome meets expectation. With the amount of money spent on these projects the main factor of success is if the outcome is worthwhile – a main focus on Mars is if it would be beneficial to the exploration of space and if it would be able to support human lives and all their needs. In my opinion even if there wasn���t any beneficial outcome that could be made or any scientific conclusions it would still be of very great importance that one day we were to visit Mars for the experience. Especially for the potential knowledge and for the outcome of the results that we collect.
In conclusion, I feel that if we were allowed the chance to go to Mars in the near future it would be of greater benefit to visit than to permanently stay. I also feel that even if Mars is not a place that we choose to stay long term it would still be of great benefit to science to visit and well worth the experience.
Bibliography
Alex Moore, Brian Rudo, Jim Keener. (2006). Why Colonize Mars . Available: http://www.redcolony.com/features.php?name=whycolonizemars. Last accessed 12 April 2017.
Jennifer Harrison. (2016). Visit or Settle the case for a one way trip to Mars. Available: http://www.gadgette.com/2016/05/06/visit-or-settle-the-case-for-a-one-way-trip-to-mars/. Last accessed 11 April 2017.
Robert Walker. (2013). Ten Reasons NOT To Live On Mars – Great Place To Explore. Available: http://www.science20.com/robert_inventor/blog/ten_reasons_not_to_live_on_mars_great_place_to_explore-118531. Last accessed 12 April 2017.
Sarah Appleton. (2016). Settling Mars. Available: http://www.nationalgeographic.org/media/settling-mars/ . Last accessed 11 April 2017.
The Martian. 2015. Directed by Ridley Scott. Filmed in Budapest Hungary,
20th Century Fox.
The Clash. (1982). Should I Stay or Should I Go. [CD]. (punk band)