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Elon Musk wants to build a city on Mars – a project that would be a precursor to making the planet more like Earth.
Wednesday, the CEO of SpaceX explained via Twitter that this city would initially involve “life in glass domes”. The planet “eventually” would be “terraformed to support life, like the Earth.” While the process of planet change would be “too slow to be relevant in our life […] we can establish a human base there in the course of our life. “If the worst comes to the worst, Musk explained,” at least one future space-traveling civilization – discovering our ruins – will be impressed by the humans who have come this far. “
Want to know more about SpaceX’s plans to explore the Solar System? Check-out Musk Reads + for exclusive interviews, analytics and more.
The comments outline what is perhaps SpaceX’s most ambitious plan: to send the first humans to Mars, build a city, and establish a permanent settlement. No problem.
Although Musk doesn’t believe humans will terraform the planet during his lifetime, he said in 2019 that SpaceX’s plan would allow humanity to “become a multi-planet civilization while that window is open.”
The company is currently developing the spaceship to take the first step of this plan. The fully reusable vessel, which measures approximately 400 feet tall when paired with the Super Heavy booster, is designed to send more than 150 tons or 100 people into space at once. SpaceX launched a full-size prototype of the ship in August at an altitude of 500 feet and plans to launch even higher over time.
Its Raptor engines use liquid oxygen and methane as fuel as opposed to the Falcon 9’s kerosene-powered Merlin engines. This means that humans can land on Mars, collect fuel from the planet and return home or venture further. The New York airline released plans in October for such a filling station.
SpaceX has confirmed that a refueling station will be part of the initial base, with the ships serving as initial habitats. Musk said in October that the first manned Starship missions could be launched in 2026.
From there, the company plans to expand the base and make it self-sufficient. SpaceX engineer Paul Wooster explained in September 2018 that the initial goal would be to establish life support systems, enable surface energy, develop habitats and build greenhouses. As the city expands, it could support scientific research projects similar to the International Space Station. Musk previously suggested that the planet could also host pizza places.
Terraforming would have occurred much later, perhaps after the release of carbon dioxide stored within the planet. In August 2018, Musk shared a 1993 research paper that stated that humans could drop shops, walk around Mars with a simple respiratory system, and abandon the need for a spacesuit. One of the author’s articles, Mars Society President Robert Zubrin, said the soil could contain enough carbon dioxide to create an atmosphere of 300 millibars, comparable to that of Mount Everest.
The Reverse analysis – Musk may never see his long-term goal come true, but the vision generates excitement around the Starship project and SpaceX’s plans to improve missile technology.
There are some questionable elements of the plan. Researchers Bruce Jakosky of the University of Colorado Boulder and Christopher S. Edwards of Northern Arizona University discovered in August 2018 that Mars may only have enough carbon dioxide to create an atmosphere of 15 millibars.
Chinese billionaire Jack Ma clashed with Musk in August 2019 over plans, which could cost up to 1% of global gross domestic product, claiming the Earth “needs more heroes.”
Economics Professor Guenter Lang, speaking to Reverse, he also suggested that the city could struggle to attract wealthy Earth citizens willing to pay for the trip.
But the enthusiasm generated by the long-term proposal could help support short-term goals, such as establishing a foundation and supporting scientific discovery. These goals are more likely to see results in Musk’s life.
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