One way trip to Mars!

[eddie]

People actually signed up for this? I wonder if any of these people, have any idea as to how they are going to get there? What space vehicles are they going to use? Who is paying for all of this?:timeout:

http://www.nbcnews.com/science/space/mars-one-picks-100-compete-one-way-red-planet-trips-n306851

[Oberon]

People actually signed up for this? I wonder if any of these people, have any idea as to how they are going to get there? What space vehicles are they going to use?

http://regmedia.co.uk/2012/10/07/space_x_dragon_in_orbit.jpg

Who is paying for all of this?:timeout:

http://i.guim.co.uk/static/w-620/h--/q-95/sys-images/Guardian/Pix/pictures/2013/12/10/1386682106847/Mars-One-CEO-Bas-Lansdorp-006.jpg

And

http://www.clipartbest.com/cliparts/9cp/eBG/9cpeBGxRi.jpeg

[Betonov]

Let them go and let's not forget about them and send more.
Damn it, the warp drive is decades away and we're still stuck here.

[GoldenRivet]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mars_One

Applications ran for 5 or 6 months about 2 years ago, applicants sent in their application with skill set and video to be reviewed, follow up interviews ensued. In the end almost 3,000 people had applied to get the heck away from Earth because obvious reasons.

a little over 1000 people were selected for final interviews and of the 1000 people recently 100 were chosen for the mission.

They will undergo a series of training exercises and learn about the various skills etc needed to live on mars and operate and maintain various machines required for the trip, life support, growing food etc.

the trip is estimated to cost approximately 6 billion dollars and is to be funded by corporate sponsorship and ad revenue from the reality TV series which will focus on the selection process, training, trip to mars, arrival and the ongoing living on the planet. Other sources of revenue include crowd sourced funding and donations to Mars One which is a "not for profit organization"

the "mission" begins in just a few years time when unmanned launches will head for mars dropping off equipment and components and habitat pods etc before some time in 2025 when the manned mission occurs and the process of sending the final 100 applicants begins. once they arrive they will more or less immediately have to start "setting up shop" and getting things running and established if they are to live very long

in owing to the fact that our species is both exploratory and perverse - the reality TV series will serve three main purposes

one it will serve as a way for corporations to make boat loads of money in ad revenue, merchandising etc etc

two it will serve as a way for the average joe to see mars explored by mankind from the comfort of his on sofa

three it will serve as a way for the average joe to watch people die on mars from the comfort of his own sofa

with that said the "final 100" are true pioneers in the literal sense. they will be abandoning their life on earth for a 1 way ticket to an alien planet supposedly never to see the earth again except as a distant speck of light in the martian sky

unless of course the whole thing is filmed inside some massive sound stage in the high Nevada desert in which case after meeting their fate on mars, the "deceased" can simply leave the lot with a new identity and re-assimilate into an alien environment stranger than any planet... Los Angeles, California

[Betonov]

the trip is estimated to cost approximately 6 billion dollars


That's not much really.

[STEED]

I signed up David Cameron, George Osborne and Ian Ducan Smith. Please please put them at the top of the list for Monday's launch. :03:

[GoldenRivet]

That's not much really.

Betonov... i should point out...

According to the wiki $6,000,000,000 is the cost of sending four astronauts to the red planet.

it does not include the cost of sending 96 of their friends

nor does it include the cost of maintaining them for the remainder of their lives

the 6 Billion figure is the estimated cost of 4 astronauts visiting for a bit like the moon landings of the 60s

[Betonov]

Betonov... i should point out...

According to the wiki $6,000,000,000 is the cost of sending four astronauts to the red planet.



Good point.

But still, 6 billion to see a Mars landing is still peanuts compared to all the money we see bamboozled into pockets of individuals.

[GoldenRivet]

this is true

[Admiral Halsey]

I'm all for going to Mars I just don't think people should be willing to go if there is no way for them to get back at all. Something about this just doesn't sit right with me.

[Eichhörnchen]

http://i.imgur.com/oFVHc9h.jpg

[GoldenRivet]

I'm all for going to Mars I just don't think people should be willing to go if there is no way for them to get back at all. Something about this just doesn't sit right with me.

Ultimately, in the long run, by the time they have been on the planet for several years i think the tech will have developed to a point that they might have an opportunity to come back within their lifetimes.

how else are they going to go on Oprah and attend their book signings?

But imagine the quality of life.

Your job is to grow fruits and vegetables in the hydroponics pod or whatever. Every day you wake up at the butt crack of martian dawn, you take your spit bath with what little precious water can be spared for scrubbing down your dirtiest parts. You suit up and make your way to the hydroponics pod where carefully and meticulously you will spend your day taking care of plants, maintaining the mechanisms that make your space nursery possible, budgeting out every drop of water. You likely have some sort of ancillary function, maybe you are also the first seamstress on mars, when you hand off the keys to the plant nursery over to the other guy you head over to another pod where you mend clothing for the rest of the day.

the point im trying to make is that every carefully considered methodically executed thing you do every day, day in and day out for the rest of your life on mars will be carried out for the sole purpose of living one more day.

its not like on earth, In fact i cant think of a single decision i have made yet this week that was critical to my immediate survival. Hell i stayed in the bed almost ALL day Sunday for no other reason than just because i felt like it, yet despite that... it was still a 4 minute drive to the grocery store where i could instantly purchase any number of awesome foods to eat without any concern as to how much was on the shelf and i didnt have to feed the chickens and raise them from birth just so i could savor the scrambled eggs i had for breakfast. I didnt have to cut the firewood im burning right now or go outside and maintain or repair intricate equipment to grant me enough electricity to write this post before something else breaks down or fails or needs tweaking in order for me to keep living

In a situation like being on mars... you dont spill a glass of water or discard a single bit of food in a situation like that... it would be like me going over to the fireplace where i have a fire going right now and just throwing $500 in there.

[Oberon]

Good point.

But still, 6 billion to see a Mars landing is still peanuts compared to all the money we see bamboozled into pockets of individuals.

Furthermore, once the first 100 are down and settled in, they will be extracting minerals which may be in short supply on Earth, the initial cost of getting them back from Mars will offset much of the profit from selling it on the open market, but as more people buy into the venture and more ships start making the Earth/Mars run then the costs will start to come down.
Of course, there's the ethical argument of how much we will change Mars with our footprint and if and when the terraforming starts to take place.

I recommend Kim Stanley Robinsons 'Red Mars', it's a bit long-winded in places but it touches on a lot of the problems that are going to face the Martian colonists.

[Betonov]

Of course, there's the ethical argument of how much we will change Mars with our footprint and if and when the terraforming starts to take place.



Mars is dead. We sent probes there and they brought back evidence that it's dead.
There's no ecosystem to destroy and we could make Mars our heavy industry area to de-bourden Earth.

[Jeff-Groves]

Furthermore, once the first 100 are down and settled in, they will be extracting minerals which may be in short supply on Earth

I claim all rights to a Martian Pet Rock!!
:o

[Oberon]

Mars is dead. We sent probes there and they brought back evidence that it's dead.

Not quite, we're still looking to see if there's microbial life underground, furthermore it's seeing if there ever was life, but that can also be done by people living on Mars.

[eddie]

This is not a trip I would want to go on. I mean, what could go wrong? If they were months along after launch, and they had an explosion on the spacecraft like they did with Apollo 13, that turned it into a crippled spacecraft, what do you do? You just can't do a free return trip like they did on Apollo 13, way to far out there for that!

[Oberon]

This is not a trip I would want to go on. I mean, what could go wrong? If they were months along after launch, and they had an explosion on the spacecraft like they did with Apollo 13, that turned it into a crippled spacecraft, what do you do? You just can't do a free return trip like they did on Apollo 13, way to far out there for that!

Back-ups. :yep: The Apollo capsules were very early space technology after all. It would be best really to make a bigger ship than the Dragon-X system, but since money is an issue here, I guess they'll just have to hope it doesn't go wrong. After all, plenty of people got lost at sea whilst exploring back in the day.
Another thing that can be done is to send unmanned craft and robots to Mars to get things ready for the settlers when they arrive. In theory they could have a few pre-fab buildings ready to go when they arrive.

[GoldenRivet]

Not quite, we're still looking to see if there's microbial life underground, furthermore it's seeing if there ever was life, but that can also be done by people living on Mars.

I'd have to agree with this statement

There are parts of our own planet that a newly landed alien probe could search for months or even years without finding any significant sign of life. Washington DC for example.

There may be microbes or some other more sophisticated life form just over the next dune

that said, there should be some sort of protocol. Personally i think if microbial life forms are the only organisms found to occupy mars, well... that's unfortunate for them. Colonize away.

but where is the line drawn

what im excited about is the proposed Europa mission! Imagine if they send that submersible probe to Europa and dive it down and hit the lights on a volcanic vent and find some sort of alien shrimp like critters swimming around - that would be amazing

[eddie]

I think it would have to be a big ship, with that many people on board, the food alone they would need just for the journey to Mars, would be huge, even if its freeze dried. Look at how much they have to take to the space station on a resupply mission, its measured in tons. And that's for anywhere from 4 to 8 astronauts.

[GoldenRivet]

Another thing that can be done is to send unmanned craft and robots to Mars to get things ready for the settlers when they arrive. In theory they could have a few pre-fab buildings ready to go when they arrive.

the manned mission is preceded by a few unmanned missions - i believe part of the unmanned mission is the dropping off of a couple of habitation type "pods" to sort of serve as an immediate shelter.

Im imagining something that would touch down on an air bag or parachute down, deploy solar panels, anchor itself into the ground and begin storing solar energy into a battery pack or something.

Once the crew arrived all they would have to do is walk up to one of the pods, open a panel, mash a button and the whole pressurizing and oxygenation of the interior of the pod would be automated, occurring within a reasonable amount of time (20 minutes?) at which point the pod could be entered and capable of supporting human life.

There would of course be other purpose build pods dropped, containing tools, food, and water and the like

[GoldenRivet]

I think it would have to be a big ship, with that many people on board, the food alone they would need just for the journey to Mars, would be huge, even if its freeze dried. Look at how much they have to take to the space station on a resupply mission, its measured in tons. And that's for anywhere from 4 to 8 astronauts.

the mission has a published "timeline"

out of the "final 100" they will be sending a crew of only 4

some time later they will be joined by a crew of 4 more

the first milestone population is 20

it is entirely possible that not even half of the "final 100" will go

[Betonov]

Not quite, we're still looking to see if there's microbial life underground, furthermore it's seeing if there ever was life, but that can also be done by people living on Mars.

The needs of the sentients outweigh the needs of the germs. :O:

[GoldenRivet]

This is the proposed timeline

2018 Unmanned Lander Mission
The first lander will touch down carrying approximately 100 lbs of misc equipment.

2020 Unmanned Lander Mission
The second mission will touch down a rover responsible for selecting the most suitable permanent colonization site and establishing in orbit a communications array

2022 Unmanned Cargo Mission
The third mission will launch 2 "life support units" and 2 "supply units" to the colony site

2024 Mars One Launches Crew One
Mars One launches for Mars carrying the four astronauts of "Crew One" and misc equipment, some months later the cargo mission for "Crew Two" is launched

2025 Crew One Lands
Following the journey through space, Mars One Capsule lands containing a "Crew One"

2026 Mars One Launches Crew Two
Mars One launches for Mars carrying the four astronauts of "Crew Two" and misc equipment, some months later the cargo mission for "Crew Three" is launched

2027 Crew Two Lands
Crew Two lands, Crew one greets them and has already prepared the living quarters for 8, expansion will begin preparing for living quarters for up to 12

this process is expected to continue to a milestone of 20 mars inhabitants is reached

[u crank]

But imagine the quality of life.

I think that would be one of the great unknown factors, the continuing mental and emotional welfare of those who go. You could test these people forever and still not know how they would stand up over the long haul. What happens if one or more of these people breakdown up there? Would their situation jeopardize the safety of others? Or of the equipment? It would be interesting to know what kind of contingency plan would be in place for this possibility.

[Oberon]

The needs of the sentients outweigh the needs of the germs. :O:

That's what the Martians said and look what happened to them! :O:

http://www.geofftaylor-artist.com/system/files/imagecache/normal/illo/y1978wotwdeadlondon71.jpg

[Betonov]

That's what the Martians said and look what happened to them! :O:



I think this constitutes as an irony to my words :doh:

The colonists will face the same problem though.

[Jeff-Groves]

I think that would be one of the great unknown factors, the continuing mental and emotional welfare of those who go. You could test these people forever and still not know how they would stand up over the long haul. What happens if one or more of these people breakdown up there? Would their situation jeopardize the safety of others? Or of the equipment? It would be interesting to know what kind of contingency plan would be in place for this possibility.

As long as they learn to run when the scary music plays they should be OK.
:D

Oh, and if they kill someone that goes crazy? Make sure he's dead!

[u crank]

As long as they learn to run when the scary music plays they should be OK.
:D

Oh, and if they kill someone that goes crazy? Make sure he's dead!

Yea and if someone complains about chest pains, well........:O:

[GoldenRivet]

Yea and if someone complains about chest pains, well........:O:

2 of every 4 crew members will be extensively trained in critical health care according to the site. I mean... they have T minus 10 years to learn this stuff before launch

[Jeff-Groves]

2 of every 4 crew members will be extensively trained in critical health care according to the site. I mean... they have T minus 10 years to learn this stuff before launch

Ya. BUT! I've yet to see anyone stop those critters from blowing out a chest!
:haha:

[GoldenRivet]

Alien Resurrection.

the critter was surgically removed and the patient survived the procedure with excellent recovery and prognosis

[Platapus]

I know 535 people I would like to volunteer to go.

[GoldenRivet]

I know 535 people I would like to volunteer to go.

This is the Mars One thread

If you want to talk about Sun One you'll have to start another thread

[Jeff-Groves]

Alien Resurrection.

the critter was surgically removed and the patient survived the procedure with excellent recovery and prognosis

Dang! I never watched that one.
:o

[Oberon]

I think this constitutes as an irony to my words :doh:

The colonists will face the same problem though.

Time for a musical break:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZ5sWfhkpE0

[Jeff-Groves]

Time for a musical break:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZ5sWfhkpE0
Shouldn't be this one about now?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=26pQNKEOXjo
:hmmm:

[Oberon]

Shouldn't be this one about now?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=26pQNKEOXjo
:hmmm:

Now I have a strange hankering for a Castlebury BBQ sandwich... :hmmm:

[Jimbuna]

http://i.imgur.com/QpF0gj9.jpg

[Wolferz]

This is the proposed timeline

2018 Unmanned Lander Mission
The first lander will touch down carrying approximately 100 lbs of misc equipment.

2020 Unmanned Lander Mission
The second mission will touch down a rover responsible for selecting the most suitable permanent colonization site and establishing in orbit a communications array

2022 Unmanned Cargo Mission
The third mission will launch 2 "life support units" and 2 "supply units" to the colony site

2024 Mars One Launches Crew One
Mars One launches for Mars carrying the four astronauts of "Crew One" and misc equipment, some months later the cargo mission for "Crew Two" is launched

2025 Crew One Lands
Following the journey through space, Mars One Capsule lands containing a "Crew One"

2026 Mars One Launches Crew Two
Mars One launches for Mars carrying the four astronauts of "Crew Two" and misc equipment, some months later the cargo mission for "Crew Three" is launched

2027 Crew Two Lands
Crew Two lands, Crew one greets them and has already prepared the living quarters for 8, expansion will begin preparing for living quarters for up to 12

this process is expected to continue to a milestone of 20 mars inhabitants is reached

2028 Nuclear apocalypse occurs on Earth
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb295/Wolferz_2007/e82ead7d85146cd1e75e7fd258234c0a.jpg

Mars crews are the only Homo Sapiens left in the solar system
No further colonization or supply missions are possible.


http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb295/Wolferz_2007/2012_john_carter_028.jpg
Send someone named Virginia so we can jump her. The last one was...
U G L Y!

[STEED]

https://s1.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/MRSPhaUa.HlubolCh2z8_Q--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7cT04NTt3PTYzMA--/http://l.yimg.com/os/publish-images/news/2015-02-13/dd34d250-b38b-11e4-8fd9-7d84b42502e1_rexfeatures_4431783a.jpg
DIET!...I rather go to Mars.

[clive bradbury]

'its not like on earth, In fact i cant think of a single decision i have made yet this week that was critical to my immediate survival. Hell i stayed in the bed almost ALL day Sunday for no other reason than just because i felt like it, yet despite that... it was still a 4 minute drive to the grocery store where i could instantly purchase any number of awesome foods to eat without any concern as to how much was on the shelf and i didnt have to feed the chickens and raise them from birth just so i could savor the scrambled eggs i had for breakfast. I didnt have to cut the firewood im burning right now or go outside and maintain or repair intricate equipment to grant me enough electricity to write this post before something else breaks down or fails or needs tweaking in order for me to keep living'

But you (me too!) are in the minority on the planet...for the majority of the world most people ARE feeding the chickens, cutting firewood, and making decisions critical to their daily survival...your description of the drudgery of life on Mars is EXACTLY like life on Earth...

[GoldenRivet]

While true for many people, i would find it hard to believe that the "majority" of people on the planet earth would simply be screwed and dead come monday if they didnt milk a cow, harvest chicken eggs, slaughter a pig, repair an evaporator, realign solar panels, close the airlock and and forget any one of half a dozen intricacies on their space suits.

Im simply making the point that Mars is a million times less hospitable than Earth just by the nature of it being a vast wasteland devoid of not just a few of the things we take for granted here on earth... but devoid of ALL of the things we take for granted and dont take for granted here on earth

[mapuc]

2030: After almost three years of Big Brother Mars mission an accident occur on Mars 4 death and 3 servere wounded.

The company behind the idea haven't got any chances to get the people home..NASA sees its chances

- You give us all your equiptment on Mars and we send two(new type of spacecraft for personal use, who is not build yet)

2033 NASA send a group of Astronaut and several cargo with equiptment and supply to Mars

2035 NASA send a groug of scientist to Mars....

Markus

[u crank]

But you (me too!) are in the minority on the planet...for the majority of the world most people ARE feeding the chickens, cutting firewood, and making decisions critical to their daily survival...your description of the drudgery of life on Mars is EXACTLY like life on Earth...

It's a good point, but it's almost certain that the people who will be going will be from that privileged group that most of us belong to.

[GoldenRivet]

It's a good point, but it's almost certain that the people who will be going will be from that privileged group that most of us belong to.

not only that, but i think few people appreciate the fact that the human body is being removed from its protective womb that is planet earth, and strictly relying on technology, stubbornness and ingenuity - the human - will attempt to survive in a completely alien environment, with no escape, no room for error.

Whether one man gets his breakfast by milking cows and snatching chicken eggs and the other man gets his breakfast at the local 50s style diner makes no difference - BOTH of these men have 75% of the things they need to survive just by occupying space on this planet.

transplant both of these men onto Mars and they essentially have 0% of the things they need to survive... they will be responsible for everything - even the processes that mother nature takes care of here on earth they will be responsible for emulating.

[Betonov]

A 1000 mile path begins with the first step.
We have to start somehow, by someone. And some need no other reason than ''it's there''.

[GoldenRivet]

A 1000 mile path begins with the first step.
We have to start somehow, by someone. And some need no other reason than ''it's there''.

http://www.myfacewhen.net/uploads/1912-so-much-win.jpg

[Betonov]

http://troll.me/images/futurama-fry/not-sure-if-serious-or-sarcastic.jpg

[GoldenRivet]

http://www.quickmeme.com/img/06/06464968d6f8fe708c5168b70a8e9d93b4fcaeb9a39c4f3b85 643f573de583c5.jpg

[Betonov]

Damn, can't think of a meme.

People voluntered to go up there and let's get them there even if I have got out and push.
Missed the Moon landings and I'm not dying until someone lands on Mars.

[mapuc]

Haven't read in detail how they will be prepared

I do hope that in their preparedness they will be send to some desert where they shall live like it was on Mars..which mean they will first get response after so and so many hours a.s.o

And they shall stay there for a year...

Markus

[Jeff-Groves]

Damn, can't think of a meme.

The Chinese already done this long ago.
All they were missing was Pay Per View.
:har:
http://home.iwichita.com/rh1/hold/av/avhist/antique/wan_hoo_rocket_chair_brite3.jpg

[Oberon]

Haven't read in detail how they will be prepared

I do hope that in their preparedness they will be send to some desert where they shall live like it was on Mars..which mean they will first get response after so and so many hours a.s.o

And they shall stay there for a year...

Markus

Makes sense, although they'd probably be better off in Antarctica, Mars ain't the kind of place to raise your kids, in fact it's cold as hell.

[Onkel Neal]

Makes sense, although they'd probably be better off in Antarctica, Mars ain't the kind of place to raise your kids, in fact it's cold as hell.

:up:
http://images3.cinema.de/imedia/3954/1773954,SSIPVzZ80UWjfKuloZv2KYcCS9VQpeUHCtfgwnIZ7J dh_f+TjbZV41hWsbub+Kmqj92KlnytUMFuYdVnwD7_Wg==.jpg

[Jimbuna]

Makes sense, although they'd probably be better off in Antarctica, Mars ain't the kind of place to raise your kids, in fact it's cold as hell.

http://i.imgur.com/H5N39kf.jpg

[GoldenRivet]

Haven't read in detail how they will be prepared

I do hope that in their preparedness they will be send to some desert where they shall live like it was on Mars..which mean they will first get response after so and so many hours a.s.o

And they shall stay there for a year...

Markus

their web site has all that information on it.

for the time being they are going to train on exact replicas of the habitats and pods and equipment in a desert location - i think the site said they are going to build possibly as many as 5 sites globally to train crews

"Simulation Post Alpha" they will call it

here is a CGI concept image

http://www.mars-one.com/images/tabs/_tab/roadmap2015.jpg

[Wolferz]

If they start planting crops, they could let nature terra-form it for them.
Or would that be Marsa-forming?

[Oberon]

If they start planting crops, they could let nature terra-form it for them.
Or would that be Marsa-forming?

You'd need to do some work first, if you just planted some wheat into the Martian soil it would whither and die very quickly.
First stage you'd need to grow crops inside a special bio-sphere, however if you genetically modify things like lichen and moss, then that can begin the slow process of terraforming Mars. After that it's a case of trying to heat up the atmosphere...asteroids will help, or comets, depending on how much water you can get from a comet into the atmosphere. Recent research has called into question just how much water is received from comets crashing into a planet.
Honestly, you probably wouldn't be able to grow vanilla Earth crops on Mars for at least a millennia.

[ikalugin]

Drop the nuclear heat generators onto the polar caps - you would get CO2 and water. That and a simple delivered biosystem would terraform Mars in a few milenia.

[Betonov]

First you'd have to strengten the gravity of the planet and get the core to start producing magnetism. the weaker gravity and no protection against the solar winds like Earth has would simply destroy any attempt in a suitable atmosphere. Impossible even with Star Trek technology.

[ikalugin]

The density of charged particles is not as great on Mars, plus we are not talking about long term (hundreds of thousands of years+) systainability.

The problem is that should we begin the process it may take too long for humanity to use it.