To Boldly Go: A One-Way Human Mission to Mars | KurzweilAI
Paul D. Fernhout
http://www.kurzweilai.net/to-boldly-go-a-one-way-human-mission-to-mars
"Paul Davies, a physicist and cosmologist from Arizona State University, and
Dirk Schulze-Makuch, a Washington State University associate professor,
argue for a one-way manned mission to Mars."
The link at Kurzweil is out of date, but this one works:
http://journalofcosmology.com/Mars108.html
"A human mission to Mars is technologically feasible, but hugely expensive
requiring enormous financial and political commitments. A creative solution
to this dilemma would be a one-way human mission to Mars in place of the
manned return mission that remains stuck on the drawing board. Our proposal
would cut the costs several fold but ensure at the same time a continuous
commitment to the exploration of Mars in particular and space in general. It
would also obviate the need for years of rehabilitation for returning
astronauts, which would not be an issue if the astronauts were to remain in
the low-gravity environment of Mars. We envision that Mars exploration would
begin and proceed for a long time on the basis of outbound journeys only. A
mission to Mars could use some of the hardware that has been developed for
the Moon program. One approach could be to send four astronauts initially,
two on each of two space craft, each with a lander and sufficient supplies,
to stake a single outpost on Mars. A one-way human mission to Mars would not
be a fixed duration project as in the Apollo program, but the first step in
establishing a permanent human presence on the planet. The astronauts would
be re-supplied on a periodic basis from Earth with basic necessities, but
otherwise would be expected to become increasingly proficient at harvesting
and utilizing resources available on Mars. Eventually the outpost would
reach self-sufficiency, and then it could serve as a hub for a greatly
expanded colonization program. There are many reasons why a human colony on
Mars is a desirable goal, scientifically and politically. The strategy of
one-way missions brings this goal within technological and financial
feasibility. Nevertheless, to attain it would require not only major
international cooperation, but a return to the exploration spirit and
risk-taking ethos of the great period of Earth exploration, from Columbus to
Amundsen, but which has nowadays being replaced with a culture of safety and
political correctness. "
Of course, there are a lot of interesting things we can do on Earth before
then, which indirectly connect to Mars habitation. :-) Examples:
"About the AARP/Bluezones Vitality Project"
http://www.bluezones.com/makeover-about
"Machine Made of Lego Builds Anything You Want � Out of Lego"
http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2010/10/legobot/
And I hope everyone on a long duration space mission gets enough vitamin D
and fresh vegetables and fruits: :-)
http://www.vitamindcouncil.org/treatment.shtml
http://www.alternativeratreatments.com/eat-to-live.html
--Paul Fernhout
http://www.pdfernhout.net/
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The biggest challenge of the 21st century is the irony of technologies of
abundance in the hands of those thinking in terms of scarcity.