Terraforming Mars To Build A New Earth

By Melissa Aguilera on May 26, 2016

We all know Ancient Aliens; that show on the History Channel known for its far out theories. It came on the other day and well, I was intrigued from the beginning. The subject you ask? Terraforming Mars. Now I know what you’re thinking, why is this science fiction nonsense even relevant?

Image via weknowmemes.com

The space industry is suggesting that this concept is no longer limited to the realm of imagination. Ancient Aliens was truly on to something this time. The things I was learning were shocking and to a point, even disturbing. But what exactly is terraforming? By technical definition, terraforming is the act of transforming a hostile environment into one that is suitable for human life. This research may seem unnecessary now, however, researchers at NASA are concerned for the future of human life. Their concerns stem from climate change, global warming, and ourselves. With nations obtaining weapons capable of mass destruction and exponential growth of pollution, experts are trying to figure out a back up plan for the human race. Completion of terraforming Mars is of course, still in the distant future, but action has already been taken through the Mars Exploration Program.

Why Mars? 

Mars is Earth’s neighbor, making proximity a huge convenience, however, it is not just about the distance from Earth. The environment of the prospect must be analyzed as well. The surface of Mars has been shaped by volcanoes and erosion by running water, just like Earth. Mars’s ice polar caps indicate the possibility of life. The presence of methane gas on Mars also suggests life, because it is produced through organic means. Features on Mars have been identified to resemble gullies, indicators of a recent flowing water system. Mars is very similar to Earth in its geological processes and environmental makeup. The problem with living on Mars is not mainly its lack of active water, it’s in the atmosphere. The atmosphere of Mars is highly different from Earth’s in that it completely lacks water, making it very cold. Here on Earth, water is the driving force behind geological processes, environmental processes, and life itself. If all goes to heck, how do we make Mars livable? We terraform it, of course.

Terraforming

In terraforming Mars, scientists are suggesting altering its atmosphere through the release of green house gases. These green house gases, such as chlorofluorocarbons, are believed to set in motion the desired geological processes on Mars. In doing this, we will completely alter the whole planet. By releasing green house gases into the atmosphere, heat is trapped, therefore melting the polar ice caps, raising the surface temperature, and igniting a chain of geological processes for a more earth like planet. Once this has been done and the atmospheric pressure begins to resemble some mountain tops on Earth, the next step would be to plant trees to produce oxygen. To begin colonization, robots are being proposed to build structures suitable for human life. But again, this whole process can take many years and is indeed, very far out. So what have scientists actually done in order to terraform Mars up until this point?

Image via nationalgeographic.com

Where We Are Now

Mars exploration has occurred in three stages; flyby’s, orbiters, and landers and rovers. The flyby’s merely flew by Mars, taking some photos. The orbiters orbited Mars for some time, collecting data and photos, discovering the active climate of Mars. Lastly, landers and rovers began to land on Mars and explore the planet freely, collecting data on the the planet’s atmosphere, geology, and climate. NASA claims that the entirety of the Mars Exploration Program is of “high priority,” suggesting a particular restrain of urgency by the association. Much knowledge has been gathered on the climate of Mars and what is needed to be done in order to make it suitable for human life. In the future, NASA hopes to bring back samples in order to understand the planet’s makeup firsthand. Then, the proper steps to transform the environment can be taken. Plans reveal that the first step would be to send rovers capable of building structures for astronauts to camp when exploring, equipped with food and organics. Then, the slow process of colonization can potentially begin.

The Mars Exploration Program is very much still in its infancy, however, what it is setting in motion is ideas of science fictional grandeur. These small baby steps through robotic visitations of probes, rovers, and the like, are the tools necessary to build a new terrain for colonization. NASA is highly determined to alter Mars through deliberate climate manipulation. I mentioned earlier how the Ancient Aliens special was both intriguing and disturbing. The idea of the human race living and thriving off a whole new planet is completely incomprehensible and awesome to me, however, the ethical angel on my shoulder keeps tugging at my ear. Is it ethical for us to move to another planet and potentially destroy another planet? Is this scientific frontier of terraforming paving the way for a more chaotic human race? What happens after we destroy Mars? Move on to the next planet? It feels as though we are tampering with the most ambiguous forces of nature and to potentially inhabit it is to potentially destroy it. My research has shown that NASA is very serious about this mission, hinting at the realities of the film Interstellar; which portrays a post apocalyptic Earth with a barely breathable atmosphere and a very secret, very imperative mission for NASA to discover a planet suitable for human life and colonization. I’d like to believe that we are no where near destroying ourselves, but according to leading scientists, the destruction we’ve imposed on Earth is potentially and most probably irreversible.

Image via tumblr.macleodsawyer.com

 

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