THE RACE TO MARS Why humans should travel to Mars and whether visiting or settling would be of more benefit to science Isobel Evans Due date: 20 April 2017 Topic: The Race to Mars - discuss the difference between “visiting” and ‘settling”. Which one do you think would be of most benefit to science Abstract: The idea of sending humans to Mars has been around for decades and very soon this idea could become a reality. Interplanetary travel raises many challenges and questions such as whether humans should visit Mars or settle there. However, first the question of why humans should visit Mars must be addressed. At a time when many issues are plaguing the Earth, why should we travel beyond our only home. There are many reasons to support Mars travel such as technological advancements, the search for extraterrestrial life, as well as preserving the human race and its knowledge by becoming multi planetary. Visiting and settling on Mars share many similarities, but there are a few differences. Visiting requires a return mission and this is a great challenge, but it would also be of great benefit to science. By visiting Mars, more research can be done in order to determine if humans can indeed survive there and the physical and psychological effects on humans can be assessed. These reasons, along with others show that, initially, visiting Mars will have more benefit to science and if humans manage to inhabit a hostile environment, while preserving the habitability of Earth, it will be a significant achievement. Introduction Mars. The Red Planet. Ares. The fourth planet from the sun. All of these names and terms represent Mars, but very soon another word could be added to this list: Home. Humans have, for centuries, looked up at the stars and questioned what is beyond Earth and wondered what our place in the universe is. The idea of sending manned missions to Mars is the next step of exploration for mankind and with many organisations working on Mars projects, the idea of interplanetary travel will no longer be an idea. It will be a reality. However, such a big task comes with many important questions that need to be answered and discussed in order to benefit both humans and science optimally. One of these decisions is whether humans should settle on Mars or just visit Mars and which would have the greatest benefit to science. Body The first question when discussing the possibility of human travel to Mars is, inevitably: Why? Why should we spend huge sums of money on a space mission that seems to only benefit a few people. That money could be used to stop hunger, combat poverty, slow down the effects of Climate change. The money and manpower used on sending a few people to Mars could save our home planet, Earth. In the last few decades carbon dioxide concentration in the atmosphere has been increasing at a rapid rate and it is the fastest ever recorded increase, with the amount of CO₂ rising above 400ppm, which is higher than it has been in the last 400000 years. As a result of this, the global temperature has increased by 0.8 since 1880,1 which may not seem like a large increase but on a global scale it can have large impacts. It is clear that global warming is a problem along with many other issues such as lack of food security, extinction of animal species and pollution. To answer the question of why humans should travel to Mars we have to look to the future, but also into history. The Space Race in the mid 1900s was the reason for many technological advancements. From satellite television to telemedicine such as programmable pacemakers and blood pressure monitors to breathing systems that help firefighters. All of these things and many more were made possible due to the Space Race and the science and technology needed for it to occur. 1 Carlowicz, Michael. "Global Temperatures.", NASA Earth Observatory, accessed 17 Apr. 2017. <https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Features/WorldOfChange/decadaltemp.php> As mentioned above, climate change is a very good argument against going to Mars, as Earth must first be protected from the actions of mankind in order for it to continue to be able to sustain life. However, there are many advancements in technology being used for the space program and mission to Mars that could benefit the environment and make humans a more sustainable species. For example, hydroponics can use 10% less water and this process of farming and growing crops could benefit life on Earth due to the dwindling freshwater supplies. This shows that interplanetary travel and preserving the Earth’s environment can be challenges that can be faced cooperatively and that can potentially be beneficial to each other. However, although climate change is a catastrophe that could potentially be prevented, there are other ways the human race could be threatened that might not be as easy to prevent such as pandemics and cosmic impacts. Making humans a multi-planetary species is a way of making sure the knowledge and existence of the human race will not disappear forever. Another reason sending manned missions to Mars will be very beneficial to science is in the search for extraterrestrial life. If any form of life is discovered beyond earth, it will have major benefits to science and would be an extremely important breakthrough. Humans are explorers and have always gone beyond in search of new lands. If humans had not explored and merely remained in one place we would not be where we are today as a species. Space travel can also bring people together by invigorating human spirit. It is a challenge, but that is why it will bring people together. As seen with the Space Race and the missions to the moon, people in America were united and amazed by the feat of putting man on the moon. Bringing people together to solve a problem and work together is also a stepping stone to combating many social injustices and issues in today’s society, for example, combating poverty. The reasons to go to Mars are there and this raises many further questions. One of these questions is whether humans should just visit Mars or whether we should settle there. Settling (settle) is defined as: to establish someone or something more or less permanently. Visiting (visit) is defined as: to go and see a person or place either socially or on business or for some other purpose; to stay somewhere for a while. 2 In terms of Mars, settling would entail one way trips carrying astronauts to Mars in order to set up a colony on Mars. A mission to visit Mars would still require many similar elements to a trip to settle on Mars. The only difference is that the stay on Mars would most likely be about 18 to 20 months as the planets need to realign in order for the astronauts to travel back to Earth. And it is this aspect of visiting that poses a large problem for the engineers working on Mars missions: How to leave 2 Oxford Everyday Dictionary, 2005, Oxford University Press, Great Britain Mars. There is still not a definitive solution on how to leave Mars and although there are ideas on how to solve this problem, it will not be easy due to the large amounts of fuel that would be required to be available for a take-off to occur. By simply remaining on Mars and not returning astronauts to Earth eliminates this problem completely. But, is this best approach for science? Returning from the surface of Mars is possibly one of the most difficult aspects of this mission and although it is a challenge, it will have great benefits to science and will make human space and interplanetary travel more advanced. There are a few important aspects that would be required for humans to survive on Mars, whether it is for about 18 months or indefinitely. There are 4 main needs that must be met for humans to survive on Mars: Oxygen, water, food and shelter. Oxygen, one of the most important requirements for humans to survive, can be extracted from carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, which is made up of 96% carbon dioxide. This is achieved through The Mars Oxygenator 3 which extracts oxygen in a similar way to the process of photosynthesis. There is water present on Mars, but having a constant supply of potable water is a difficult task. Water could possibly be extracted from the soil or ice below the surface of the planet. These are the most promising sources for water extracted and not enough water will not be able to be transported from earth due to the 9 month journey and the amount needed. Food will most likely have to be from premade food sent with the astronauts and food grown hydroponically and by other means on Mars will come into account in later missions. Lastly, astronauts will need to have shelter that will be able to protect them from harmful radiation and extreme conditions. The options range from pre-erected structures to building more permanent structures from the martian soil. Overall, Mars is a hostile environment for humans. But, through science and technology humans will be able to survive on Mars, which shows that whether humans settle or visit there, the ability to survive in hostile environments will still be gained. This knowledge will still be gained if humans visit Mars and it will have the same benefits to science. The technology and methods used to survive on the red planet can be applied to certain areas on Earth to make them more habitable for humans, such as in deserts or polar regions If astronauts visit Mars all of this technology will be needed and it will still have similar scientific benefits to settling.