Transportation to Mars and Other Destinations
Elon Musk, the founder, CEO, and CTO of SpaceX, announced a transportation system capable of transporting 1 million people to Mars and other destinations in the solar system. The announcement was made on September 27th at the 2016 International Astronautical Congress in Guadalajara Mexico. Musk's presentation immediately raises a number of questions.
Why build such a transportation system to Mars? Musk believes it is important for humanity become a multi-planet species. In the simplest terms, no single extinction event on Earth will be able to bring humanity to an end if we are well established on Mars. To become well established on Mars it would be good to have 1 million people living there. The transportation system can also be repurposed to explore and possibly inhabit other locations around the solar system.
Who would want to live on Mars? Musk and company are aiming to make a ticket for transport to Mars cost something equivalent to the average price of a home in the United States, or about $200k. So many people should be able to afford to immigrate. However, the journey and life on Mars may be very dangerous in the early days. Musk stressed that the first qualification to be a settler on Mars would be a preparedness to face mortal danger.
What would life be like on Mars? Beyond the hazards, life on Mars could be really great. Technology is rapidly reaching a level of efficiency where human labor is optional. Establishing a self-sufficient civilization on Mars will advance automated technology even further, to the point where physiological and safety needs will be maintained by automated machinery. Mars colonists will be free to focus their time and energy on other tasks. Some number of colonists might focus their efforts on terraforming Mars. Scientists and engineers theorize that it may be possible to transform Mars into an Earth-like planet with a breathable atmosphere and a vibrant biosphere filled with plants, animals, and liquid oceans.
How are a million people going to travel to Mars? The transportation system Musk envisions builds upon technology and techniques already in use by the company. The new rocket engines needed for the spacecraft are a derivative of the company's current engine design. This new engine, named "Raptor", underwent its first test firing a few days before Musk's presentation. Similarily, a prototype propellant tanks necessary to efficiently transport the energy required to feed the Raptor engines has also already been constructed. Many challenges remain and the system seems highly ambitious. Yet compared to the achievement of landing humans on the moon with 1960s technology, landing people on Mars with modern technology shouldn't be comparatively easy.
Why is this news important? The process of colonizing Mars will transform huamnity in a positive way. Beyond ensuring species survival, the advancements needed to establish a self-sustaining civilization on Mars can be used to create a more sustainable civilization on Earth. Automated construction, manufacturing, resource extraction, recycling, and medicine must all advance to support a successful Mars colony. The transportation system needed to colonize Mars can also be used to explore other destinations in our solar system including places likely to harbor non-terrestrial life.
First development tank for Mars spaceship
Image credit and references
- Image by SpaceX depicting an artist's conception of the SpaceX Interplanetary Transport System landed on Europa.
- Video by SpaceX depicting a computer rendering of the SpaceX Interplanetary Transport System, September 27, 2016.
- Presentation by Elon Musk, "Making Humans a Multiplanetary Species," September 27, 2016.
- Video by SpaceX showing the first test firing of the Raptor engine, September 25, 2016.
