Living on Mars is not worth it due to the high risk and low reward
What kid has not wished they could live in space? Kids dream of being able to do flips in anti-gravity, look at incredible views and explore with unlimited potential.
Experts say that NASA could get a person to Mars by the mid 2030s, but billionaire Elon Musk started his own company to develop a rocket that they hope will have its first human mission by 2026. This means there is a strong possibility that humans could live on Mars in our lifetime.
However, living on Mars would not be all sunshine and rainbows. The average temperature on Mars is negative 81 degrees Fahrenheit, while Earth’s is 62 degrees Fahrenheit. All humans would need to wear spacesuits and high tech buildings would be required.
The suit and buildings would also need to have a controlled environment to protect humans from dangerously low atmospheric pressure. Mars has an atmosphere of 96% Carbon Dioxide compared to .04% of Earth’s atmosphere. For Mars to be livable, the technology would need to create a similar atmosphere to earth.
These structures that humans would live in could be underground, 3D printed or they could be the same spaceships they came in, but anyone living on Mars would need to be inside for the majority of time.
Additionally, Mars does not have a magnetic field, which protects humans from radiation. This is the number one concern about living on Mars, as radiation leads to cancer and many other diseases. If someone spent one hour a day outside on Mars, they would have three times more radiation exposure than one full day on Earth.
The gravity on Mars is stronger than the moon, but still only a third of the Earth’s gravity, which would affect the heart, muscles and bones, as they all rely on gravity to function and grow. Astronauts who have lived in space have an allocated exercise period of two hours a day that includes cardio and weight lifting to try to avoid these effects.
Additionally, there would be no FaceTime, Zoom or phone calls to friends and family. The planets communicate via satellite, but there is over a three minute delay when communicating.
If you still aren’t scared yet, know that water is hard to find. The civilization would need to find a place on the planet near ice caps in order to get water.
The planet also has massive dust storms, which could damage electronics or solar instruments that it came in contact with.
In Genesis 1, God created the Earth specifically for life to thrive. Mars was not created for that same purpose and we would not be thriving.
Let’s learn a lesson from our current situation in the COVID-19 pandemic.
We have seen what happens when we have to be inside for the majority of the time. Everyone was taking walks and going to the grocery store just to get out of the house a little because humans don’t like being constrained.
We also had to limit face to face interaction. Living on Mars would mean having a limited number of people to hang out with and limited diversity as well.
Finally, COVID-19 shut down travel. Mars does not have the biomes that Earth offers with many different types of plants, animals and scenery. Additionally, the location of a civilization on Mars would have to be carefully chosen for livable conditions, which means that those in the civilization would not be able to travel elsewhere.
Humans living on Mars is not quite like the childhood dream we all imagined. In fact, it means losing so many of the basic joys of life, and that it is simply not worth it.