Terraforming Mars Wohoo Star Trek What is

Terraforming Mars Wohoo, Star Trek!

What is involved? • • • Terraforming process Time Cost Colonization Worth the effort? Future interaction with space

Terraforming Process: What needs to be changed? • Temperature • Pressure • Oxygen • Water • Radiation

Terraforming Process: Temperature Currently -60 C limitations: must be 0 - 30 C • Introduction of Greenhouse Gases – Orbiting Mirrors (solar sail) melting southern polar cap releasing CO 2 (total melt of polar cap results in 70 degree C increase) – Anaerobic micro-organisms (bacteria take in CO 2 spit out O 2 and methane or ammonia) – In situ factories (pump out greenhouse gases from air and soil) Decrease albedo (dust or plants)

Terraforming Process: Pressure currently 1% Earth’s sea level - 8 millibars (pressure suits required) • • Directly related to temperature increased by thickening the atmosphere – CO 2 from all of South polar cap and the regolith give pressure of 300 millibars (1/3 Earth sea level) – Greenhouse effect could give a atmospheric pressure of one-eighth to twice that of Earth’s

Terraforming Process: Oxygen Currently 95% carbon dioxide (Oxygen masks necessary) • Photosynthetic plants (CO 2 - O 2) – Genetic engineering – Timing (require some O 2, water) • Photosynthetic micro-organisms (CO 2 - O 2+) – Few tough bacterial species – Timing

Terraforming Process: Water Evidence of liquid water in past, though none present today Heating of the planet should release much water • northern polar cap • regolith • groundwater reserves

Terraforming Process: Radiation Once the atmosphere has been thickened there will be sufficient protection from radiation • UV • Solar Flares • Cosmic Rays

Terraforming Methods: initial steps • Green house effect! Must raise the surface temp by at least 4 degrees to start a run away. – in-situ industry greenhouse gases (CFCs or PFCs perfluorides) but requires in situ building and energy! solar or nuclear – Reducing albedo dust/plants – Double sun! (mirrors raise temp 5 k - s. pole evaporation) The run away would completely evaporate the S. Polar cap in about a decade

How long will it take? Decades to millions of years • Greenhouse – centuries • Pressure and Temp – few decades to centuries • Plants to decrease albedo – 100 - 10, 000 yrs • O 2 (photosynthesis) – several centuries to 100, 000 yrs • Melting of South polar cap – decade

Cost issues Will become more financially feasible as. . . • Technology increases – Better ideas – More efficient methods • Interest increases – Government and public support • More knowledge accumulated – Better accuracy – More controlled greenhouse – Better prediction of results

Colonization! • • • Once the pressure and temperature on Mars has been altered by the terraforming process, it will be much easier for large numbers of explorers to move to Mars to start a colony. Once dome-like residential structures have been made, plants can be grown that will produce acceptable oxygen levels in these enclosed areas. Since planet wide oxygen levels will take a longer time to arrive at Earth-like levels, colonists will require O 2 masks for outdoor excursions. Unless we wait until technology has advanced quit a bit, Martian colonies would be on their own to construct a comfortable living environment - minimal interaction with Earth Safety – • • Long term effects of a different environment Government Ecopoiesis (creating a biosphere)

Future in Space! • The act of terraforming Mars will automatically increase our interaction with the rest of space. New ideas will have to be explored as we choose the best process of terraforming. Technology advancements specifically geared towards the terraforming project will be used for other exploration projects. If we attempt to terraform Mars, it will either be a total flop (discourage or motivate) or will work nicely (motivate and concentrate our focus).