Uhm what about the moon??

[kimba1]

Shouldn't we try a moonbase first?  Am I missing something? Wouldn't the very  least a lunar base will be helpful on training people for low gravity living . Also maybe installing relay stations on the moon might benefit earth . Not sure the distance from the moon has much of a signal delay though.


http://mars-one.com/en/faq-en/21-faq-selection/251-do-i-qualify-to-apply

[Xavier_Onassis]

I suspect that experience on the Moon would be useful for exploring the Moon, and not Mars.

I think they have written off colonizing the Moon as a fruitless pursuit, since it is so similar to the Earth in terms of the minerals available. Mars seems to have water, the Moon does not. A major feature useful to humans.

[Plane]

I think the most interesting use of the Moon is as a building and living site.

If, there is enough raw materiel on the moon to build with it would be cheaper to build orbital stations and spaceships with moon materiel than Earth materiel because the Moon takes less power to leave.

It might be possible to get a lot of metal from captured asteroids , if so it may still be usefull to have factorys to use it on the moon because it takes less power to land on the moon also.

[Xavier_Onassis]

It is fine with me if someone wants to colonize the Moon before colonizing Mars, or vice versa. I was merely speculating about why someone might want to forget about the Moon and start with Mars first. Water is essential to humans and pretty much everything we do.Mars seems to have some, the Moon does not.

[kimba1]

Actually the lack of water is another reason  the moon would be a good reason because the trip to mars will takes months and they need pound out as much of the problems. Biosphere two has proven how hard it is to live that completely cut off. Remember they early on miscaculated the air quality due to the materials the building was made from. They didnt know concrete effects oxygen. People outside thought sex would be an issue,but it turnout not knowing your getting enough food was a mood killer.

I really think a six month stay on the moon will greatly help the colonist deal with the trip to mars. Learning to live in a place  with a self contain enviroment will take some getting used to. Remember  this trip is oneway and they will need to find out who can take it.

[Xavier_Onassis]

I do not think that NASA is going to fund any one way trips to the Moon or to Mars. You can send someone on a dangerous public mission, but certainly not a 100% fatal one. The public would be against funding a fatal mission. Perhaps China, Russia, Belarus or come other nation could do this. not the US.

There is certainly far more information about both places that can and should be discovered by other means than sending a person or persons up to scope either place out.

[kimba1]

America doesn't do space missions . But you're point explain why we finally have mars one way tripd since itd a global venture. America is not likely to do this

[Plane]

What is unattractive about a one way trip?
It would only be emmigrating, and pioneering.


You would certainly need to bring a good set of tools.

[Xavier_Onassis]

If people are sent to Mars, I am sure that NASA would be involved in some way. This country will not fund a one way mission to Mars. Watch and see.

The first mission would surely be exploratory, just as expeditions to Antarctica were exploratory. That means that the explorers will return. Perhaps they will leave robots behind to make things easier for future expeditions.

We have yet to send a permanent mission to Antarctica. Everyone who goes is expected to return. And Antarctica has water and air you can breathe. Mars has neither. Nor is the temperature on Mars as conducive to human life. In Antarctica, at least the temperature is consistent.

[Plane]

If people are sent to Mars, I am sure that NASA would be involved in some way. This country will not fund a one way mission to Mars. Watch and see.

Yes , that is what is wrong with depending on NASA.

I would chip in on such a mission, if there was a raffle held with a seat on the flight as the prize.

I would probly buy several tickets over time.

Then of course the training of the emmagrating Astronaughts would be a profitable reality show.

[Xavier_Onassis]

Again, if they send people to Mars, they are NOT going to send them unless they have some provision to return them. That would be awful PR and simply intolerable, since it would be paying people to commit suicide. The more publicity they used to get funding, the harder it would be to send them on a suicidal mission.

The first manned mission to Mars would not be a colonization attempt. And I would imagine that it will take a long time before any such mission happens.

I think that NASA is doing a fine job at present, with the robotic and satellite missions. We have learned more from these than the manned missions. The first Moon missions were not mainly for scientific purposes, they were basically ego trips. That was not necessarily a bad thing, but we do not need to repeat the same sort of thing on Mars.

[Plane]

If Mars can be colonised , Mars should be colonised.

If it is possible to bring enough kit to live there indefinately , why return?

Coloumbus returned to Spain , but pretty soon people were coming on one way tickets.

[Xavier_Onassis]

If it is possible to bring enough kit to live there indefinately

===============================================
You would have to bring edible plants and a way to grow them. I doubt that the first expedition to any planet would be a mission to colonize it.

This seems a long way off in the future. We still are not flying around in the autogyros Popular Science promised us we'd have by now in the 1952 issue.

[kimba1]

The thing is one way trips is more workable than two way. Right at this moment no human can survive a oneway trip to mars but in ten years its more possible but not likely make it back. The issue is radiation. Unless we get star trek shields the two way trip issue will not happen in our forseeable future

[Plane]

It is the nature of rocket travel that you can carry more than ten times the luggage on a one way trip than you can on a round trip.

The plan I like best would send a lot of supplies ahead so that there would be plenty in place before the astronaughts arrived.