Comments on: SpaceX founder Elon Musk wants to start a Mars colony

By: Ahmed

Ahmed — Fri, 14 Dec 2012 15:08:00 +0000

Living on Mars? LOL. How would you expect people to survive there?

By: Tiamat333

Tiamat333 — Fri, 30 Nov 2012 13:12:00 +0000

Good idea to get all of our eggs out of one basket, however the Moon would be a much more realistic goal in the short term since a rescue mission in case of a catastrophe would only be a week or so away. Small steps, Ellie. One of the craters on the Moon’s south pole would be a good site as water ice has been detected there.

By: Rob

Rob — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 17:52:00 +0000

This a ambitious initive, i just hope they do more anaylist on Mar’s environment. Living in almost a dead world is going be challenge mentally for some people who do opt go. I’d rather see more research done make sure a population could survive, never mind thrive up there.
Plus they’ll have find something to do economiclly so their have something else to do aside from surviving. They’d need some sort of industry up there to make their own things aside from exports of soil, water and other things they need. I have trouble believing the Mar’s limited resources is enough to support a population.

By: Rocket Scientist

Rocket Scientist — Tue, 27 Nov 2012 18:28:00 +0000

There is the recent finding from the Curiosity mission that the surface radiation levels are much lower than theory and are survivable. This changes a *lot* IMO about the habitability. BTW – apparently the atmosphere provides more shielding than previously thought, but it’s hard to fathom how NASA and others have been so wrong prior to now – yet another reason to have humans on the ground to get data faster…

By: cryoburner

cryoburner — Tue, 27 Nov 2012 15:53:00 +0000

Yep, I suspect that not that many wealthy people in good health would be willing to go, unless it was for a short-term stay with a guaranteed return trip. Most early colonists would likely be middle-class who receive sponsorship from businesses, governments or groups.

By: cryoburner

cryoburner — Tue, 27 Nov 2012 15:26:00 +0000

I suspect his colonization plans are decades off, and only in the early stages as far as details go at this point. By the time they get to designing the equipment for living on the planet, much of this information will already be known, through robotic, and probably short-term manned missions. Likewise, we would undoubtedly perform additional experiments that isolate people for years at a time in self-sustaining modules on Earth to see how such a community could perform. I’m sure he’s not planning on sending thousands of people at once either, but using that as long-term goal for after they’ve worked out the details using small initial groups.

By: Rocket Scientist

Rocket Scientist — Tue, 27 Nov 2012 05:01:00 +0000

One last thing, turns out that the Magnetosphere does not seem to shield well from either solar or galactic cosmic radiation on the moon, and additionally there is secondary neutron scattering on the surface that people think is dangerous. Given the recent findings about Mars atmosphere providing decent shielding, this puts a damper on the moon base as a first step…

By: Ian

Ian — Tue, 27 Nov 2012 05:00:00 +0000

Little point. Mars cannot yet support life, and they will consume more of the remaining resources here sending life support there… Mars cannot yet be our lifeboat – we dont have the technology to terraform it.

By: Ian

Ian — Tue, 27 Nov 2012 04:58:00 +0000

But in doing so they redistribute that wealth to the people who send them there. Once there they will have to pay significantly to be supplied with such resources as are required to set up and survive etc.. It is the sort of activity that cannot be justified as an investment except for its entertainment value to the rest of us.

By: Ian

Ian — Tue, 27 Nov 2012 04:55:00 +0000

Good point. But it remains sadly unlikely that there is any point to colonising Mars yet. We have no real way to terraform the planet yet, and the planet has no significant magnetosphere to protect it from serious radiation, making long term inhabitation hazardous. The gravity well makes it also a poor choice as base of operations for exploiting the asteroid belt. Would a better option be one of the larger asteroids?

By: Ian

Ian — Tue, 27 Nov 2012 04:46:00 +0000

There are only two valid reasons for imposing government – first to protect those unable to defend themselves from exploitation, of any kind. Second to provide the infrastructure and community the services it wants that it is not profitable for private industry to provide. Government is a social and civil program, making it possible for individuals to specialise and thereby further profit from their endeavours. Civilisation exists today because of governments not capitalism. Cavemen have capitalism, the Huns practiced capitalism. It requires government and social and civil programs to provide civilisation.

By: Rocket Scientist

Rocket Scientist — Tue, 27 Nov 2012 03:09:00 +0000

Excuse me, I meant to say “magnetosphere”, which should have been obvious given the comment about cosmic radiation.

I believe the best way to describe the tone of this discussion is: “ad hominem” or “to the man”, meaning it has devolved into personal attacks without regard to the intent of the dialogue. It has sadly become uninteresting and unproductive as a result. Peace out.

By: Rocket Scientist

Rocket Scientist — Tue, 27 Nov 2012 03:04:00 +0000

Excuse me – I meant magnetosphere:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnetosphere

Which you would have been able to recognize, but for your intolerance and jealousy getting in the way of an interesting discussion of the opportunities for advancement herein.

And given the state of discussion here, for which “ad hominem” is the appropriate term, I will take my thoughts elsewhere.

Funny how people will ultimately deny themselves the very air they breathe if they feel it benefits another more than they…

By: Rocket Scientist

Rocket Scientist — Tue, 27 Nov 2012 00:54:00 +0000

Umm – you used a straw man argument using Romney as the straw man. I can not find where I used a straw man argument, perhaps you can enlighten me.

Oh, and BTW – I am in fact a rocket scientist, though that term is an anachronism today.

By: Rocket Scientist

Rocket Scientist — Tue, 27 Nov 2012 00:50:00 +0000

Perhaps you can cite examples where people in a picket line, or who pulled down fences have advanced humankind? Did ranting against the rich cure polio, invent electricity, discover nitrate fertilizer from natgas? Forcibly taking money from one and giving it to a group of others is your answer to what exactly?

If we don’t celebrate those who invent by bestowing profit and fame to them, then how exactly should we advance humanity – perhaps by holding drum circles and writing poetry?

Capitalism works – it is arguably the reason civilization exists today and we have time for philosophy of this kind. A helping hand for those in need is important, but can not be the focus of our society – we should not be ashamed to have heroes and elevate them through wealth.

By: Richard Tietjens

Richard Tietjens — Tue, 27 Nov 2012 00:43:00 +0000

Interesting that you call yourself “Rocket Scientist” and yet you can’t follow a simple logical statement to the correct conclusion. Your straw man argument will only hold water with Teabaggers and Brainless boobs like Romney. Tell me, how did Romney get to be wealthy? I’ll make it easy for you. It wasn’t through hard work or honest, ethical actions. And I suspect you’re a rocket scientist in the same way my cat is a nuclear physicist.

By: Rocket Scientist

Rocket Scientist — Tue, 27 Nov 2012 00:40:00 +0000

So, let me get this straight, if you work hard and smart, and make a lot of money, then you are automatically evil? This is the warped world of a jealous mind. Who are your heroes?

You have to be poor to be virtuous? Studied Buddha much? The dialogue on this thread is upsetting to me – it reinforces the stereotype of a jealous, vengeful electorate out for “vengeance” in Obama’s own words…

Mars does indeed look very promising.

By: Richard Tietjens

Richard Tietjens — Mon, 26 Nov 2012 23:04:00 +0000

I’ve read it. It’s a fantasy based on the theory that people who work don’t know how to make things work. Ayn Rand is a demented person who wrote a book to make herself wealthy.

By: Richard Tietjens

Richard Tietjens — Mon, 26 Nov 2012 23:03:00 +0000

How much do you need to do that? Kickstarter will have to going in a week, I’m sure.

By: Richard Tietjens

Richard Tietjens — Mon, 26 Nov 2012 23:01:00 +0000

Last time I checked, the moon is a good bit higher than 600 km. The ionosphere extends from about 85 to 600 km in altitude (source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ionosphere), while the moon is about 384,400 km away. You are, at best, 2.5 orders of magnitude off.

Regardless, due to the lack of atmosphere to stop micrometeorites, any long-term human habitation on the moon will need to be underground. It *is* an excellent location for mining, construction of spacecraft, and so forth.

By: Richard Tietjens

Richard Tietjens — Mon, 26 Nov 2012 22:53:00 +0000

Creative and resourceful only equate to wealthy when “creative bookkeeping” and “resourceful exploitation of other people” apply.

By: HA

HA — Mon, 26 Nov 2012 22:14:00 +0000

Its a good thing you aren’t in charge of policy making because you wouldn’t understand social mobility if I beat you with the textbook.

By: HA

HA — Mon, 26 Nov 2012 22:05:00 +0000

Seriously, don’t you have a Ayn Rand book club to be monitoring?

By: HA

HA — Mon, 26 Nov 2012 22:04:00 +0000

The Irony to the name you picked is how incredibly unintelligent you are.

By: Joe Subling

Joe Subling — Mon, 26 Nov 2012 19:49:00 +0000

Someone’s been reading too much Ayn Rand.

By: Rocket Scientist

Rocket Scientist — Mon, 26 Nov 2012 19:27:00 +0000

I guess in your world creative and resourceful translates into “corrupt”. You aren’t alone – 50% of the country agrees with you, which makes the creative, resourceful and consequently wealthy people sad and afraid to be themselves for fear of your contempt and ultimately government action designed to punish wealth.

By: technoboi10

technoboi10 — Mon, 26 Nov 2012 19:04:00 +0000

There are many important things about the martian environment that we don’t yet know, and any plans to colonize it are premature. We don’t yet know the long-term range of exposure to ionizing radiation on the surface, the frequency of meteor impacts on the surface, the long term effects of dust storms on breathing apparatus, the chronic effects of low gravity on human physiology, and the list goes on. We all need inspirational goals and love ambitious projects like this. But before we begin to invite masses of humanity to live on Mars, we need much more information and much improved technology to protect them. Otherwise we’re just inviting disaster.

Just look at what happened in the American midwest after the government enticed the mass migration of farmers to the plains at the beginning of the 20th Century. No one anticipated the ecological disaster that ‘proven’ farming methods would create in a just a couple of decades, resulting in a huge amount of human misery and suffering. And that was in a relatively well understood and friendly environment.

Colonizing Mars would not be merely the most complex technological challenge we’ve ever faced, but also the most complex ecological and social experiments ever conducted. Let’s proceed to Mars, but with caution. Let’s make informed decisions, and not succumb to overly optimistic projections that grossly oversimplify the problems.

By: Duncan St. Ives

Duncan St. Ives — Mon, 26 Nov 2012 19:02:00 +0000

The amount that I would do this is way over 9000.
Seriously. I have skills that would be super useful… Might even be able to scrape up $500K. Anyone know where to sign up?

By: Scott Soup

Scott Soup — Mon, 26 Nov 2012 18:56:00 +0000

We have to establish ourselves on another planet. With the population doubling again, finite resources and possibly something bad happening to the earth, Mars is a good thing. The USA thinks about today not necessarily about the future and that is why our government is starting to have problems making decisions.

By: aphi

aphi — Mon, 26 Nov 2012 18:56:00 +0000

I have zero respect for anyone who would bring their warped bigotry into any and every discussion. Facts to the contrary don’t matter to you as long as you can take cheap shots at the President.

By: aphi

aphi — Mon, 26 Nov 2012 18:48:00 +0000

If he were willing to PAY $500,000 for people to live on Mars he’d get more volunteers.

By: rodbert

rodbert — Mon, 26 Nov 2012 18:36:00 +0000

Musk! Get back to building cars, dude. We can colonize Mars with robots at a later date.

By: sengayo

sengayo — Mon, 26 Nov 2012 18:31:00 +0000

that’s my question too. probably those 80K super rich people will feel great for being the super select few to have colonized Mars . . . for a few Mars days. then they will want to kill themselves . . . after they hang Musk first.

By: Rocket Scientist

Rocket Scientist — Mon, 26 Nov 2012 18:30:00 +0000

In many respects it’s what we’re doing now – but it’s apparent to me that we’re moving much more slowly to characterize mars than we would if we had humans in situ. Adaptability and resourcefulness, born of desperation and ambition are what have made humans so effective – this is hard to reproduce in remote machines operated by scientists with many minutes of time delay…

By: Brent

Brent — Mon, 26 Nov 2012 18:30:00 +0000

sell tesla’s…………

By: Thoth

Thoth — Mon, 26 Nov 2012 18:28:00 +0000

So, basically, only rich people will have the luxury of leaving Earth once it becomes inhabitable and overpopulated. Brilliant.

By: Robert Andrew Showalter

Robert Andrew Showalter — Mon, 26 Nov 2012 18:26:00 +0000

You should read “The Promise of Mars” by Robert Zubrin; it was written in 1996 and actually speaks of what sounds like a viable plan of sending equipment ahead of time and prepping the planet to host humans. It always seemed like a very good idea.

By: jeffc

jeffc — Mon, 26 Nov 2012 18:25:00 +0000

It won’t take long for some to complain that the Mars colonization plan lacks “diversity”. The government will step in and regulate the selection process and subsidize those who can’t affort to go on their own.

By: Robert Andrew Showalter

Robert Andrew Showalter — Mon, 26 Nov 2012 18:24:00 +0000

Alternatively, the rich just sponsor a not rich person who has all the skills required. It’s not necessarily those with money who actually go.

By: Jack M

Jack M — Mon, 26 Nov 2012 18:23:00 +0000

I personally find it funny how people think those who can easily afford this as the problem. The ability to make millions is easier than ever. However, America at large has become lazy and/or chose careers that do not allow them to amass a fortune. It’s simple. If you don’t have $500k, start a business, work your @ss off, and work on yourself more than you work on your business. It’s a simple formula – but few have the mental fortitude to work it.