Precisely what would be the motivation to create another human-habitable planet?

As an escape hatch hatch should earth become uninhabitable? The logistics to handle the transport of any sizable fraction of humankind would be beyond resource limitations, to say nothing of technology.

Or would it merely be a way to provide another place where human could breed themselves out of resources?

How many centuries would it take to create supportive ecological niches on Mars?

It never fails to amaze me the puerile discussions about terraforming other planets.

The economic issues surrounding these plans are hardly ever discussed.

Just because something might be theoretically possible one day, it is nothing but intellectual masturbation, unless you can answer the basic questions: who would pay for it and why on earth would anyone want to pay for something that may cost thousands of trillions of dollars and that would not benefit them in their lifetime.

I say give it up. Put on your Trekie uniform and go to one of those "live long and prosper" conventions.

At the minimum, migration of 1% of Earth's population to any other planet would seem to require a beanstalk, a theoretical super-materials cable from somewhere above geosynchronous orbit to the Equator. Elevators running up and down this beanstalk could in theory provide the most energy-efficient path to orbit.

Currently, I don't think we have bulk materials with high strength and low density to build one on Earth.

Of course, for madmen, the beanstalk is an "Deep Impact" already aimed at Earth and just waiting for systems failure or an appropriate explosion to bring it down.

You may choose which country on the equator you think is most politically stable in which to base this Beanstalk, and all the military, political and economic fallout which will accompany it.


Terraforming Mars would be MUCH more expensive than a beanstalk. We would need a space-bourne population working for generations to build up infrastructure to move space ice around Jupiter and Saturn to Mars. Energy requirements to move "an ocean" and an atmosphere of ammonia to Mars are very high. After that, a few decades of bioengineered bugs should oxidize the NH4 to N2 and more Water, and BlueGreen algae can make free oxygen.

Why don't we just bottle up all our eeevil CO2, and launch it to mars, via said space elevator? That would help with our supposed global warming, as well as help terraform Mars.

Depending on your technology base something like Mars terraformation is either impossible or plausible. Once upon a time laying steel rails across continents would have been thought of as impossible. Yet in the 19th century it was done. Once it was considered the oceans were to turbulent to allow ships to travel very far. Yet Columbus did sail across it 500 years ago. If you put a laser light show on for a Sumerian they would have been likely to accuse you of being a witch or a God or some thing like that, yet we all know such things are no more difficult then pointing and shooting nowadays.

To terraform Mars as per Earth it is likely you will need to add more water then is there already. To that end manuvering comets from the oort cloud into 100 year orbits that intersect Mars must be possible. In addition to that great energies must be harnessed to make many of the tasks possible. Such advances are likely if given a long enough time.

Making Mars Earth like. Or even moving a sizable proportion of Earth population there isn't impossible. It is just difficult now.

Hi,

It might be easier to terra-form venus using specially engineered micr-organisms or nanotech organisms to change the atmosphere into one that is hospitable to humanity.

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I agree with Arkwald. With a space elevator, many things become possible that would seem impossible otherwise. It will not take any more centuries than it took to colonize North and South America.

Now, I am not saying it WILL happen this way, but it is POSSIBLE if the technology makes it available (the space elevator)- and the technology probably will eventually.

When is anybodies guess, but it may be a lot sooner than seems possible at this moment. It will be a transforming technology like the automobile, telephon, tv or computers. It will change everything.

How can we use global warming to show life on mars?
Does anyone really know what the temp is on mars? It would have to be damn cold to say that ice existed on mars.
Personally it has to do with gases. And for the canals, i say stars, or the belt wawas hitting mars at a great thrust.
Next we will hear scientist say that there was life on saturn or another planet.
Question does anyone know what the temp is from pluto to the earth?
I would be curious to find this out.

Forget about ice, what about those supposed 'canals' (i.e. non-natural structures) on mars, and the supposed vegetation?