Questions tagged [colonization]
Questions regarding the formation of a new colony on another planet or other body.
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Before we build a Mars colony, why don't we build a 100% self-sustainable test colony in the Antarctic?
Before we go to Mars, why don't we build a sealed dome self sustaining colony in the Antarctic? One that can heat itself, recycle all materials, water and waste. Grow enough plants to produce oxygen ...
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How big does the Martian supply chain need to be, to be self sufficient?
Something I've been pondering recently is how big the manufacturing base needs to be to manufacture everything in the manufacturing base. Big in this case referring to total mass, machines required, ...
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Why are tunnels not popular considerations for Lunar or Mars colonies?
In many modern movies, books, articles, blogs, renders etc which talk about colonies on Mars or the Moon, I often see things like habitation modules or 3D/SDL printed regolith structures and similar ...
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How bright would Earthlight be from the surface of the Moon? Can you read under the light of the Earth?
In the lunar sky, the Earth would certainly outshine the Moon from its place in the sky of Earth. However, I can find very little about what it would actually be like.
I am wondering about the size of ...
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How would a violin or trumpet degrade over time on Mars?
What would extended periods on Mars do to musical instruments? I'm assuming these instruments would be in habitats similar to ISS or similar, but how might they degrade?
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Which of Jupiter’s Galilean moons would be easiest to establish a permanent presence on? [closed]
The moons of Jupiter are numerous and varied. Which of them would be easiest to colonise in terms of technological complexity?
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Can the resources of Titan be of any use for colonisation of the Saturn system [closed]
Will the resources of Titan aid outer solar system exploration?
What does Titan have?
Well:
*Lakes of ethane and methane
*Thick atmosphere, mostly nitrogen
*Ices stored in the rocks (the rocks are ...
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Is having a natural satellite an advantage for colonising a planet or its satellite system?
Natural satellites contain resources and sometimes atmospheres, and are close to their parent and sometimes lots of other moons. Couldn’t we use a base there to colonise its parent or a neighbouring ...
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Growing Mars crops in sunlight vs LEDs
There is extensive research on growing food on Mars, and I'm particularly interested in optimizing food production.
Given equal area in a greenhouse, is it more efficient to grow crops on Martian ...
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Are there any considerations to build up would-be colonial newborns' immune systems when space outposts are designed to be as sterile as possible?
Following the Hygiene hypothesis, newborns in sterile environments would develop a weaker immune system and be more likely to develop allergies.
To some extent the immune system can be made to be ...
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Are valleys a good alternative to caves for radiation shielding?
Lava tube systems and caves have been discussed a lot when it comes to establishing a base on the Moon or Mars in order to protect it from the continuous exposure to lethal radiation, as well as ...
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Is 1/6 G enough for humans to stay healthy?
Micro-G is known to be detrimental to health in the long-term. However, the Moon is at $\frac{1}{6}$ G (while Mars is at ~$\frac{3}{8}$ G). Is $\frac{1}{6}$ G enough for humans to remain healthy in ...
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Would it be advantageous to uncover the subsurface ice in the only two regions on Mars where water can flow downhill in summertime?
The image above is a screenshot from a part of NASA's Treasure Map for Water Ice on Mars.
Within 'the only two regions' I mean the uppermost parts of the two coloured extensions to the north into the ...
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What is the planned Nuwa city atmosphere?
Nuwa is a proposal for a large-scale permanent Martian settlement.
What is the planned atmospheric composition of Nuwa city's air? Will it be 15psi Oxygen/nitrogen, and trace gases or low partial ...
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Is there dirt or its structural equivalent on Mars?
One potential solution to an initial permanent colony on Mars would be a series of modules with dirt floors and walls and slightly convex, transparent roofs. Assuming the interior temperature was ...
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How large could manmade, domeshaped caves inside the ice dome in Korolev crater on Mars become without the danger of collapsing?
Would not the right exploitation of the ice dome in Korolev crater be the most economical way to create Earthlike room for living on Mars, if they were safe to use?
With "Earthlike" I mean ...
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How much more likely is it for a colony on Mars to receive a damaging meteorite hit than a similar structure on Earth?
Meteorite damage probability is low both on Mars and Earth, but Earth has a thick atmosphere, which Mars does not. The thinner atmosphere on Mars should yield some increase of impact probability.
Is ...
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I think I have an idea of how to stop global warming, where can I share it? [closed]
It is quite simple space technology that will require a lot of funds and some physical and biological research, but I think it is realistic to create it because the idea is simple (build special space ...
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Is radiation on Mars line-of-sight? [duplicate]
Roughly a year ago, there was a TV show about colonizing Mars; National Geographic channel I think. The habitats were underground to avoid the Sun's radiation.
So I'm wondering: does the radiation ...
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Was the Apollo Programme the best option for long term space exploration?
Let us take the following as axiomatic:
The long-term future of humanity is dependent upon the successful colonisation of space,
The Apollo Programme was the greatest technological achievement in ...
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Is a cheap English translation available of Tsiolkovsky's "Outside the Earth"?
Anyone know where to pick up a copy of Konstantin Tsiolkovsky's science fiction book titled "Outside the Earth" (alternately titled: "Beyond the Planet Earth" and "Beyond ...
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Can we generate electricity from Martian sandstorms? If so can it be used for powering colonies?
Rapidly varying electric fields inside dust storms have been observed and studied for years.
The winds in the strongest Martian storms reach 60 miles per hour.
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Asteroid orbiting between Earth and Mars as ferry?
What if we moved a large asteroid to a highly elliptical orbit between Earth and Mars and then occupied it like we occupy the ISS?
It'd be a slow trip to Mars, but if we're in no rush, we'd get free ...
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Can VLF be used to create a Mars barrier?
I just ran across some older articles in 2017 discussing how VLF radio waves created an artificial barrier to space weather. Basically how VLF improves Earth’s protection from solar radiation.
This ...
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Are there enough people who have the resources to pay for a one way trip to Mars to start a colonization?
Are there evidence that shows there are enough people who have the resources to pay for a one way trip to Mars to start a colonization? If there are not, then any near future proejcts won't go further ...
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Challenges and power required to make useable iron from iron oxide on the surface of Mars?
There is a very large amount of iron oxide on the surface of Mars within easy reach (once you are there of course).
What would be the practical challenges to collecting this and turning it into usable ...
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Suit for Titan Life
I was wondering what suit I'd need for Titan, The design of the Suit, and the oxygen system of the Suit? I know that you'd need a suit that can keep you warm and supply oxygen but how would it do it? ...
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What is the correct rough estimation for the payload to kick-off a sustainable Mars colony?
In this talk, Elon Musk explains our current global capacity required to kick-off a sustainable Mars colony, should be about 1 000 000 tons (including humans).
While this is for sure just some rough ...
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What are the nuclear energy challenges specific to the moon?
What are moon specific hurdles to a fission reactor?
low gravity
no atmosphere
Apparently it's more difficult to shed heat in a vacuum. Are some coolants more advantageous on the moon than others?
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What would be the challenges for a settlement immersed in liquid fluorocarbon on Mars?
Perfluorononane is a fluorocarbon with a density of 1.8 g/mL and a melting point of -16⁰ C.
According to this paper it has a vapor pressure of about 0.7 kPa at 15⁰ C, so in regions with low altitude ...
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Mining Venus' surface using lasers?
One of the issues with colonizing Venus is the harsh conditions at the surface. People have proposed using floating habitats in the upper atmosphere, where conditions are milder, and gathering ...
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Space Exploration and Religion [closed]
When various civilizations practice religion, its usually linked to some monuments or holy sites in Earth. As an example in Christianity, its Bethlehem, in Judaism, its Jerusalem, in Islam, its Mecca, ...
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Mars versus the poles of Mercury WRT colonization
From MESSENGER Finds New Evidence for Water Ice at Mercury's Poles :
Credits: NASA/John Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington/National Astronomy and ...
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Compact ISRU for manufactured goods?
Most studies of ISRU focus on propellants, life support supplies, concrete, or other "bulk" materials (liquids, gases, granules). This makes sense, given that the majority of a typical ...
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Most efficient method of storing energy with water on the moon?
I found a large cavern under my lunar homestead. It is several hundred feet (a couple hundred meters) deep and fairly large. There is a large ice deposit at the bottom. I am able to warm it to ...
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Can our civilization colonize solar system while reliant on fossil fuels?
As the Space X's starship edges closer to reality, it's time to ask a question if our civilization can colonize other planets in the solar system while being still reliant on fossil fuels.
Could we do ...
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Why are all possibly habitable exoplanets higher mass than Earth?
I have been writing a scifi book in which I wanted to include real stars and planets as locations. It was simple enough to find a chart on Wikipedia that lists possibly habitable exoplanets, but I ...
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Are there any modern studies for how to colonize an exoplanet involving interstellar travel?
As in the title, are there any modern studies for how to colonize an exoplanet involving manned interstellar travel?
By this I mean an academic peer reviewed study. However, it doesn't have to be ...
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What are the advantages of building a human colony on the Moon vs Mars?
The opposite question, What are the advantages of building a human colony on Mars vs the moon? was asked yesterday. I thought it made sense to ask this version as a corollary.
As noted in the other ...
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What are the advantages of building a human colony on Mars vs the moon?
Why would humans try to establish a colony on Mars rather than on the moon?
Seems to me that both bodies are similarly inhospitable, yet the moon is so much easier to reach (and we should be able to ...
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How do we know how to distribute food supplies to import to Mars between 1st and 2nd tour?
Coming from this question about Mars foundation cargo, how do we know which food to deliver with the first and with the second cargo? (2x2x100t in total)
possibly the first tour could carry more ...
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Are there still more images of caves on the surface of Mars that could be easily made accessible for humans?
Image captured by Curiosity on sol 1087, click on it and then again for a closer view.
This is the first cave on Mars I've seen so far that could be (made) accessible for humans.
Are there still more ...
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What would it take to survive the radiation on the surface of Ganymede?
Out of the four Galilean moons of Jupiter, only Callisto is at a safe distance from its parent planet that the radiation is low enough so one is able to colonize it. Io is totally uncolonizable (from ...
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Are there any at least somewhat authoritative estimates of how long it will be before people will land on Mars and setting up camp?
While the naive but perfectly valid question Are they building on mars or do they have a camp there? was closed and overly downvoted, I think my answer there was reasonable; the perception by the lay ...
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What is the day/night cycle at the north pole of Mars?
Here on Earth, we have polar nights and midnight suns at our planet's poles. In terms of Sols, what would the day/night cycle on Mars be for a colony situated at the north pole?
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Would it be possible to make a bubbleworld in an asteroid? [duplicate]
Would it be possible to drill a bore hole into an asteroid, fill it with water tanks and use sunlight to blow a hole large enough to fit a rotating space station inside, seal it off and fill it with ...
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Would mass drivers be able to transport base material on the moon more efficiently than drones?
I am a hobbyist working on a climate change adaptation idea that is a variation of orbital sun shades. It would project soil/material from the moon to provide targeted shading for whatever part of ...
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Could a framework of mirrors static in space above the Lunar south pole illuminate a moonbase there continuously?
Edit:
For clarification of what I mean with "static in space above the Lunar south pole " please see this answer from @Tom Spilker or his answer to the question Orbits that allows ...
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How applicable can Martian soil samples from a handful of sites be to Mars at large?
Martian soil samples have been said to be heavily contaminated with perchlorate salts, which will obviously have tremendous impact on efforts to colonize Mars. But what reason do we have to believe ...
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How fast would one have to move to achieve permanent lunar day by perpetually moving along with the solar terminator?
This comment got posted and I did not understand it.
for those interested, one rod per moonhour is about a quarter furlong per fortnight.
If I googled correctly and jumped to the right conclusions.....
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