Have you ever wondered what it would be like to live on Mars? It might not be as glamorous as the movies make it out to be, though; the real problem with living on Mars isn’t the distance from Earth—it’s that we aren’t ready for Mars. Although NASA has made strides in preparing for missions to and from the red planet, we still have some kinks to work out first if we hope to inhabit Mars in our lifetimes…or even at all! Here’s why we aren’t ready to live on Mars yet and what we can do about it.
Isolated from Friends and Family
If you’re moving to Mars in 2025, as Elon Musk’s SpaceX intends, good luck communicating with your friends and family back on Earth. As it stands now, there are no rockets or spacecraft that can get you back home in a reasonable amount of time—something Elon Musk knows all too well. (He’s lost both his parents to cancer.) That makes it almost impossible to realistically keep in touch with loved ones who remain here. This is a problem we could solve relatively quickly by investing more money into space travel. But we aren’t doing that right now, which means people will have to make some tough decisions about what they value most if they want to live on Mars. There are many things people might miss about life back on Earth—but maybe nothing more than being able to see their children grow up or being able to say goodbye when someone dies.
Limited Communications
Back here on Earth, people can get upset if they don’t receive texts right away or are unable to call home for a few days. But imagine being stuck in orbit around Mars and not able to communicate with Earth. It sounds like a blast, but it would be horrifying. Plan to keep in regular communication with your loved ones at home by e-mailing and calling them often—and if you won’t have that option, reconsider making any long-term trips. You might also want to consider putting your affairs in order before taking off. If there is no way back from Mars, you might want to ask your lawyer about setting up an irrevocable trust. You wouldn’t want anyone coming after what little you have left when (or if) you return.
Loneliness
Some experts have suggested that long-distance space travel could be so psychologically grueling that it would cause astronauts to lose their minds. In fact, loneliness is such a problem among NASA’s current crop of astronauts that researchers are studying ways to combat its negative psychological effects—for example, by having special Mars buddy robots that astronauts can communicate with. It’s also possible that some sort of virtual reality technology might help alleviate feelings of isolation and homesickness during lengthy space missions. (Source) No Blue Skies: The first thing you notice about Martian skies isn’t their color but rather their darkness. On Earth, if you gaze up at night from a brightly lit city, you can see plenty of stars peeking through; but in dark regions away from cities or streetlights, our starlit view doesn’t seem so obscured. On Mars? You won’t see many stars at all because there’s too much light pollution produced by nearby human settlements.
Lack of Purpose
The biggest problem we face living on Mars is that there’s no real purpose or goal for us to be there. While it would be exciting to get out of our own atmosphere and explore a different planet, our most important mission in life is providing for ourselves and those around us. On Mars, we would have almost nothing to do because everything that could be done has been done. That means boredom and depression are both big problems we will have to solve. What can we do when we’re not working? What activities can keep us engaged? How can we give people something to look forward to every day? All these questions must be answered before humans can leave Earth permanently.
Health Issues in an Environment Without Gravity
No one knows exactly how long-term exposure to microgravity will affect human health. The effects may be different for various parts of our bodies, and could have longer or shorter impacts on older individuals. Research also suggests that there could be some cognitive impairment during spaceflight as well as other issues, such as muscle deterioration and bone loss. But don’t fret—researchers are working hard to solve these problems before we set off for Mars. They’ve already identified a number of ways to minimize negative effects in space travelers, including exercise programs and dietary changes. Additionally, they’re investigating artificial gravity solutions (like rotating spacecraft) that could help mitigate some of these challenges. In short, it is likely that humans can adapt to life in an environment without gravity—but it will take time and effort!
Psychological Issues in an Environment With Confined Space
The closest we’ve come to understanding how humans would deal with a long-term space trip has been during our six-month stays aboard NASA’s International Space Station. Researchers have seen negative behavioral and psychological effects, such as depression, anxiety, irritability and loss of motivation. These are all symptoms that could impact our ability to perform tasks in space or at least be productive members of society. Physical Issues in an Environment With Confined Space: Long-term exposure to microgravity can also lead to muscle atrophy and bone mineral density loss, which can increase one’s risk for bone fractures upon return to Earth. It can also cause cardiovascular deconditioning (when your heart isn’t used to pumping blood against gravity), which could lead to high blood pressure upon return.
No Convenience Store Around the Corner
If there’s something you need that doesn’t exist in your habitat, then you have to make it yourself. While manufacturing can provide a big boost for a space colony economy, there are no convenience stores in space. If someone wants potato chips or soda and there’s not a vending machine nearby, they’re going to have to make them themselves. And that’s why we aren’t ready for life on Mars—we don’t know how to make potato chips or soda. And if we did know how, we wouldn’t want to do it because making stuff like that is really hard work. It requires energy, specialized equipment and raw materials—things that we haven’t figured out how to produce in space yet. So until we figure out a way to get these things into space (or find another way to live) our plans of living on Mars will remain just that…plans.
