Let's talk about terraforming Mars.

[TheWraith]

I grow weary of the constant drumbeat of negativity here. Let's talk about something upbeat: The idea of terraforming Mars and turning it into a more Earthlike planet, with an eye towards eventual colonization. And please, no snarky replies about dealing with this planet before we screw up another.

I read an article awhile back talking about the mechanics of Martian terraforming, and various ways that it might be accomplished. Most of the proposed techniques center around jump-starting Mars' greenhouse effect, since this is the most efficient way to heat up the planet. Once the planet was warm enough, the water ice in the northern polar cap would be able to melt, which would allow for establishing an ecosystem.

The simplest way would be to cover the southern polar cap, which is believed to be mainly frozen carbon dioxide, with dust. The dust would absorb more sunlight than the bright ice, and allow it to begin to sublimate. The neccessary dust-cloud could be created by a carefully placed asteroid impact, or more practically by a small nuclear device of around 20 KT. You'd have to do this more than once--probably around four times, each at the beginning of the Martian spring.

Another proposal was to introduce fluorine to the atmostphere in order to produce perfluorocarbons, which are 10,000 times more powerful as a greenhouse gas than CO2. If you pumped enough fluorine into the atmosphere, you could raise the polar regions above the freezing point of CO2, and from there the temperature increase would more or less self-sustaining. This method has the side benefit that the fluorine/CO2 reaction that creates PFCs also produces oxygen. Unfortunately, this method could raise the temperature of the tropics to an uncomfortable level.

I favor the first option: it's relatively simple, we can begin immediately, and if it doesn't work we're not out anything. Once we've got the planet warming up, hopefully we can get the water ice to melt. Then you've got water, you've got CO2, possibly even some nitrates--time for some bacteria. In fifty or sixty years, you could have an atmosphere you could breathe. Two thirds of Earthling pressure, true, but breathable.

What think you all?

[Spinzonner]

1. Need to play god ?

(and I use that figuratively)

Why not wait until we have more knowledge and wisdom and learn to deal with this planet before we embark on screwing around with another one.

[depakid]

2. Where are you going to get the low entropy energy

to get there even if you could terraform?

Little problem with thermodynamics there-

[rman]

3. it's going to take a couple of 10,000's of years

i can't wait that long for something to lift my spirit.

[rfkrfk]

4. where do plan on getting nitrogen?

the atmospheric pressure on Mars is less than one percent that of Earth.

95% percent of that thin air, is carbon dioxide

[Teaser]

5. What if there is life there?

The chance of some kind of microbial or similar life in the martian permafrost is not nil...


So do we have a right to terraform that potential life, however insignificant, out of a home?

[Deja Q]

11. Well, if you give a damn about human life, you might have to.

Earth is overpopulated and those in control make the decisions.

When they come up to you with their insta-death(tm) ray, will you question their morals before they zap you?

[htuttle]

12. That's a good question, but I doubt humanity is ready for that debate

I've considered that issue before. If beings inside our biosphere have a 'right' (by genetic design) to consume other beings inside our biosphere for their own survival, does a similar ethical imperative exist regarding 'competing' biospheres? Should there be?

Do we have the 'right' to extinguish (or consume) a more primitive biosphere in order to advance the survival of our own (not exactly the question you've asked, but has a similar set of ethical issues).

I don't know. I suspect most earthlings would prefer the survival of our own biosphere, but I don't know if that's 'right'. As I said, I doubt humanity is ready for that debate.

[zippy890]

6. Yes - its an exciting goal -- to Mars!

after all, we may need to go there out of necessity

but really, I love this idea, it would be even better
if it could be an international project, not funded
and run by any one government.

[breakfastofchampions]

7. I wouldn't hold my breath

actually maybe I would.

[moobu2]

8. I don’t think it's possible

because of the weak magnetic field Mars has probably due to the type of core it has or maybe the core cooled to the point that it has a very weak magnetic field etc...

Earth has a solid iron core suspended in molten heavy metal which generates a strong magnetic field that protects our atmosphere from solar radiation. Without that core set up Earth would have lost it’s atmosphere like Mars did. (I think).

I think anything you did to alter Mars atmosphere would be lost to solar radiation because of that weak magnetic field.

[HereSince1628]

9. You beat me to it. Colonization of Mars will be inside vivaria

if at all: closed indoor environments.

With nothing to protect Mars from solar wind, it's atmospheric gases will simply shear away. Mars just won't sustain anything like earth's atmosphere.

[Nye Bevan]

10. Hopefully aliens built an oxygen machine on Mars thousands of years ago

and we could send Arnold Schwarzenegger there to turn it on.

[hatrack]

13. How do you propose to increase the gravity to hold the air in place?

Let me know when you figure that one out.

[ReverendDeuce]

14. I am all for it... in fact...

I seriously think that the Pentagon and NASA's budgets should be reversed. Give NASA a nice $500bn and see what stuff they can come up with. I'm ready for it, baby! It's about time we start taking space exploration seriously.