Do you want to move to Mars? Just in time – we’re going through a climate crisis anyway!
Do you know what humanity decides to do after systematically ruining the planet we were born on? Abandon it and slowly but surely move to Mars, because why not? Why save something or repair the damage we’ve caused with our own little hands when we can simply abandon the ship?
Well, that’s what seems to be happening, as Elon Musk, along with his little army of tech soldiers, is planning on moving to Mars by the end of 2050. Of course, one might think that they are “testing the waters”, but no.
As far as they are concerned, they’ve already tested everything, so much so that they’ve started planning what they’re going to build out there. We’re talking about real buildings, cars, taxis, and cities. Maybe even malls. Here’s what we should expect:
People on Mars will be assisted by hundreds of robots.
As it turns out, the plans are already made: in 2050, thousands of people will move to Mars, in the first-ever city built on another planet. As soon as the first “batch” accommodates the whole “living on another planet” thing, thousands of other people will be transported to Mars every two years.
The city will likely start off with a proper team of scientists, researchers, and robotics engineers. However, by 2050, people with jobs in construction, maintenance, manufacturing, and food preparation will probably be the ones to embark.
As you can imagine, there won’t be a lot of time for recreational activities, mainly because most civilians will have to work 10 to 16 hours a day to develop the city as fast as they can. “Luckily” for them, hundreds of robots will be continuously deployed to Mars to assist with construction efforts. On top of that, 3D bioprinters might become available to print skin and organs in order to mitigate premature death.
Hundreds of 3D-printed facilities will be built.
Moving to Mars will imply moving into a city with multiple facilities that will complement each other in terms of needs, such as living quarters, restaurants, storage spaces, communication hubs, gyms, and even research centers.
I have to admit it feels a bit weird talking about all these things as if I’m presenting the latest commercial avenue in Miami. You might wonder who will own all these things, and I have the answer: plenty of investors on Earth will have ownership of them, so nothing different here.
Given that on Mars, there are high levels of radiation, humans will have to live in enclosed domes above the surface and travel via tunnels below the ground. Also, an adequate level of air pressure would be constantly maintained in these habitats to make up for all the low air pressure outside the domes. Artificial trees and turbines might succeed in converting carbon dioxide into oxygen for the humans living inside the domes.
Food on Mars will be genetically engineered.
After moving to Mars, the majority of the food will be comprised of crops grown in tunnels, lab-grown meat, and insects. As for veggies, the typical Martian diet will include wheat, corn, soybeans, peanuts, and sweet potatoes, all genetically engineered.
Other common foods might include lab-grown chicken, cultured meat burgers, pizza, vegan eggs, and milk. Cricket flour might be incorporated or hidden in various recipes thanks to its high protein and healthy omega-fat ratios. These food items are known to have reasonable high-calorie densities to make sure that a large Mars colony could stay fed.
Renewable energy sources will play a significant role in human survival.
If you’re one of those people who consider moving to Mars, then you need to know that the majority of energy used in Martian cities will rely on solar panels placed on Mars’s surface. In addition, these Mars panels might be supplemented by nuclear fission reactors.
Large energy storage facilities will be utilized to provide some backup power, especially during global dust storms that might last for weeks and block the sunlight from reaching solar panels. They thought of everything: a nuclear fusion power plant might be in charge of handling most energy needs.
More than that, autonomous robots will carefully extract hydrogen from water in order to make hydrogen-based fuel for transportation vehicles.
Terraforming plans will be underway.
Mars has various aspects that make it the worst planet to live on, such as:
- the fact that the temperature there is equivalent to Antarctica’s temperatures on Earth;
- Mars has 50 times the radiation of Earth.
- The low air pressure on Mars is 21 miles above the Earth’s surface, which would kill any human.
For all these reasons, terraforming is absolutely necessary, especially if humans decide to move to Mars in the long run.
Aggressive expansion plans might take place very soon.
Over time, the first city on Mars will grow increasingly larger. They even plan on building multiple cities throughout Mars’s surface. The vast majority of cities might be built in the Hellas Planitia region, which is also the lowest plain on Mars.
It is believed that the spot has an air pressure that’s easier to accommodate compared to anywhere else on Mars. Also, they plan on building multiple human settlements close to the natural caves and lava tubes near the Arsia Mons volcano. Naturally, humans won’t have to do all the work, as they will deploy dozens of exploration robots to gather data about those areas.
Mars will be a major hub for the space mining industry.
Mars colonization might be profitable given the sales of intellectual property rights to Earth and the mining of important metals on Mars, but also because of the ongoing mining of asteroids found in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.
This kind of decision will bring a ton of money because space mining will allow corporations to gain trillions of dollars over the next few decades.
Orbiting satellites might enable constant communications with Earth.
Mars is no less than 140 million miles away from Earth on average. Also, it usually takes around 20 minutes to send a signal from Mars to Earth or the other way around. It gets worse: it seems that when the Sun is right between Mars and Earth, communication is blocked for up to two weeks.
That’s part of the reason why they decided to place satellites in Mars’s orbit around the Sun in order to act as relay stations. This way, people who decide to move to Mars will have access to continuous communications between these two planets without any substantial interruptions.
Data transfer between Earth and Mars might be possible with blockchain technology. Moreover, some of the most fascinating communication means might imply viral videos about living on Mars.
Reusable rockets will transport people to Mars every two years.
Most of the people who will be living on Mars will probably move there with a SpaceX spacecraft. To be more specific, we’re talking about a fully reusable Starship model and all the upgraded versions that might follow. But travelers will be able to go on a spacecraft supplied by NASA and other organizations, too, if needed.
Of course, the difficult decision to move to Mars will also imply undergoing extensive psychological screenings and different background checks to make sure that they are mentally prepared for the tough conditions on Mars.
Autonomous robots will be programmed to mine for water.
The water supplied for future Martian citizens will be mined for and made by autonomous mining robots. The robots will get water from ice and hydrated minerals found on the planet.
If you decide to move to Mars as soon as they open “the gates” (get it?) Because there are no gates, you’ll need a notebook to make a list of everything you need. Well, we recommend you get this notebook; it will be easier to remind yourself how much you want to move to another planet.
If you enjoyed reading this piece, then you also need to try: 4 Stephen Hawking Predictions: Alien Invasions and AI Dangers – but Is He Right?
