Would you want to be one to colonize Mars?

[pam]

8 Utahns among finalists to live on Mars — forever | ksl.com

Many are wanting to be one to help make history. One finalist is a father of 4 that would be leaving wife and children behind.

Would you do this to make history? Knowing that you are leaving everything behind never to return to earth?

[Blackmarch]

wish I could. I don't have enough of a skill set to be a help to the rest of the folks on board for something like that.

[pam]

I just couldn't imagine leaving my kids behind and the rest of my family. There are just too many what if's for me. Will there be a qualified doctor or surgeon? Is there a way to produce or grow food? What about water?

[Guest]

I'm one that would go for something like this... but only if I can bring my family with me.

I've always dreamed of living in Lusitania!

[Dravin]

Ignore all the concerns about food, air, water, medical care, boredom, I wouldn't leave my wife behind.

[applepansy]

I'm shocked that he's one of the finalists chosen. With four children he has responsibilities here. His comment about a couple of million in life insurance bothered me too. When does the life insurance pay out? When he leaves earth? unlikely. When he's dead? How will we know in a reasonable amount of time. After 7 years of missing? but he's not missing, he's on mars.

what a nightmare for his wife.

[Daybreak79]

I don't want to colonize Mars, but I can think of some people I would like to volunteer for such a task!

On a side note, I can't believe someone would leave their wife and kids behind to do this. Is this just their way to keep from having to file for divorce?

[Guest]

Ignore all the concerns about food, air, water, medical care, boredom, I wouldn't leave my wife behind.

You're only saying that because she can read this and you want some back rubs or something later...

[Anddenex]

No. I am the type c personality (made up personality) that waits for things to be fully functional before I would even think about it. I would also have to know how many LDS folk would be on the ride.

[Dravin]

You're only saying that because she can read this and you want some back rubs or something later...

Nope, I love my wife even when she can't see me.

[jerome1232]

I guess I don't understand how one creates a colony without bringing families

[Still_Small_Voice]

They will have to wear weights all the time while they are on Mars. Mars only has 33% of the gravity that Earth has.

Mars is very cold and has a thin atmosphere. Likely all the colonists will die from either running out of air, water or food. I think the mission to colonize Mars is bound to fail. I hope I am wrong.

[Saldrin]

Sure a new planet for me to rule!

[Guest]

They will have to wear weights all the time while they are on Mars. Mars only has 33% of the gravity that Earth has.

Mars is very cold and has a thin atmosphere. Likely all the colonists will die from either running out of air, water or food. I think the mission to colonize Mars is bound to fail. I hope I am wrong.

Why would they need to wear weights?

Of course, one wouldn't just create a settlement on Mars without accounting for resource planning. I mean, sure, the British settled in Virginia without knowing if the crops they brought would grow on American soil... but that's quite different than settling on Mars. We've studied the possibility of life on Mars for 40 years. The Mars exhibit in Port Canaveral is quite impressive.

[pam]

Why would they need to wear weights?

To stay grounded since there is much less gravity there than on earth?

[Guest]

To stay grounded since there is much less gravity there than on earth?

It's not 0G. It's 0.376G. More than enough to keep people from flying off...

The gravitational difference studies are centered around the health effects of long-term low gravity on the human physiology such as bone density. This won't be mitigated by weighing people down.

[Dravin]

The gravitational difference studies are centered around the health effects of long-term low gravity on the human physiology such as bone density.

It should also be noted that low gravity in the context of those studies means a weightless environment, I don't think there are any studies concerning 0.38 G. While it is reasonable that muscles would atrophy and bone density would decrease the results wouldn't be to the same degree as permanently inhabiting a space station and other problems like immune response and red blood cell count aren't a given (I'm willing to be corrected by someone who knows the subject better). You would find your body adjusting over time but you'd just need to design the mission and equipment appropriately, and the fact that if you returned to Earth after several years you'd break a hip easily is moot if it is a one-way trip.

Edited January 9, 2014 by Dravin

[Suzie]

No. I am the type c personality (made up personality) that waits for things to be fully functional before I would even think about it.

Oh, also known as...the C-H-I-C-K-E-N syndrome.

Just playing with ya.

[Still_Small_Voice]

With only 38 percent of gravity we have here on Earth one would get very weak on Mars.

My guess is they will wear weighted vests and weighted wrist bands. That would be the least of my worries when compared to running out of breathable air.

[Dravin]

With only 38 percent of gravity we have here on Earth one would get very weak on Mars.

And everything you're trying to lift or maneuver on Mars is also only under the influence of 38% of the gravity we have on Earth. I suppose the human body won't necessarily react linearly but it doesn't seem obvious to me that this would be a problem (but in the end it isn't like I'm an expert on the subject).

Edited January 10, 2014 by Dravin

[ztodd]

I guess I don't understand how one creates a colony without bringing families

They actually are suggesting to the 4 that will be chosen to not try to have kids there or anything since they won't have good enough medical equipment or expertise there... and it sounds like for some reason they plan to leave the choosing of the final 4 up to the world to vote on, out of those that are qualified- and they all have to be from a different country.

There are too many things wrong with the whole thing- if they're really serious about it, it's rather scary and stupid I think that so much will be wasted on this.

About the gravity thing- the bigger problem will be that they would be in mostly zero G for the 7 months traveling there, so even the 0.38 G on Mars would come as a shock to them after that. Their bones and muscles would definitely be wasted away by the end of their lives... but who knows- they might actually live longer.

There's definitely no way they would ever be able to get back to Earth.

[Quin]

History doesn't need me to make it.

It seems to do just fine all by itself.

Besides... Forcing school kids to memorize my full name just seems harsh.

Q

[pam]

And everything you're trying to lift or maneuver on Mars is also only under the influence of 38% of the gravity we have on Earth. I suppose the human body won't necessarily react linearly but it doesn't seem obvious to me that this would be a problem (but in the end it isn't like I'm an expert on the subject).

There are probably not many on this site who are experts in this. :)

[Guest]

About the gravity thing- the bigger problem will be that they would be in mostly zero G for the 7 months traveling there, so even the 0.38 G on Mars would come as a shock to them after that. Their bones and muscles would definitely be wasted away by the end of their lives... but who knows- they might actually live longer.

There's definitely no way they would ever be able to get back to Earth.

This would be an easier (uhm, if you can call sending 4 people to Mars easy) problem as you can always design the space craft to spin or do something to effect 1/3G.

They can also get back to Earth by gradually increasing the craft's G to match earth's during the trip.

[Guest]

It should also be noted that low gravity in the context of those studies means a weightless environment, I don't think there are any studies concerning 0.38 G. While it is reasonable that muscles would atrophy and bone density would decrease the results wouldn't be to the same degree as permanently inhabiting a space station and other problems like immune response and red blood cell count aren't a given (I'm willing to be corrected by someone who knows the subject better). You would find your body adjusting over time but you'd just need to design the mission and equipment appropriately, and the fact that if you returned to Earth after several years you'd break a hip easily is moot if it is a one-way trip.

There has been plenty of Mars gravity simulation studies in the past 40 years that simulates 1/3G. There was a Mars exhibit in Cape Canaveral years ago that had some stuff like a greenhouse growing in a Mars simulated environment. There's a lot of health effects studies too, one of them I read back in the 80's, although I can't tell you what it says anymore, but I do remember it mentioning people may be taller on average in Mars.

There is that Maven mission going on right now. It would be interesting to see what kind of stuff that probe is going to give us. I think that mission centers on studying what killed Mars.