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?

http://www.nbcnews.com/science/space...-trips-n306851

[Oberon]

Originally Posted by 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?

And

[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]

Originally Posted by GoldenRivet

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.

[GoldenRivet]

Originally Posted by Betonov

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]

Originally Posted by GoldenRivet

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]

[GoldenRivet]

Originally Posted by 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.

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]

Originally Posted by Betonov

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]

Originally Posted by Oberon

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]

Originally Posted by Oberon

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!!