Would you take a one way ticket to Mars?
Posted on: August 24, 200920 comments so far (is that a lot?)
As we were driving David back to his hotel last week he brought up an interesting concept: it is possible that SpaceX could deliver humans to Mars, but it would be a one way ticket. You could go to Mars but would have no way of returning home to Earth. He asked if I would take the ticket.
I had never thought of that concept before. With Dr. Zubrin’s plan, which to date I believe is the most viable plan I have heard of to get humans on the red planet, we could send refueling rockets to Mars before the humans arrive so we have a way home. What if we decided to simply go all out? Explore like the pioneers did when they were settling America. When the pioneers started venturing west they didn’t really have a way home either. They didn’t know where they would live or if they would even survive the journey. After many years and in no small part thanks to those pioneers we have grown in to one of the worlds most powerful nations. Could the same thing, nay, should the same thing happen on Mars?
The space geek in you may be inclined to jump up and say “YES! I would go to Mars no matter the cost!!!” But really think about it. You will have to build everything yourself. If you walk outside without protection you will die. Initially there won’t be any advanced plumbing. You may need to go vegetarian for years or the rest of your life. No Internet. Communications with Earth will be delayed by at least 3 minutes in each direction. You will never see your family again unless you brought them. You could run out of food, water or supplies that will sustain your life at any time.
So, would you take a one way ticket to Mars and why or why not? I won’t post what I answered just yet, I would like to get your thoughts before I tell you how I replied to David.
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To answer your question: my wife wouldn’t go with me, so..
There’s also the question of when you were offered the one way trip. As a pioneer or as a homesteader?
Then there’s the economic question, how much is the ticket going to cost? Elon Musk has suggested a few million dollars, I don’t have that and if I was offered the ticket for free I’d have to consider how much I could sell it for
A free ticket to die on another planet? Hmm. Seems to me you’re going to die no matter where you are, so it might as well be someplace filled with a lot of “firsts”. I’d not want to go it alone, though. Give me Jimmy Neutron’s dog Goddard and I don’t think I’d look back.
And I’d have Spirit and Oppy to keep us company, too!
BS, you could go free spirit! XD About the ticket to Mars, I don’t think I would take it, at least, not just yet.
Without hesitation. Whatever training i would have to do to sustain myself, however long I would have to build up to it. Not a doubt in my mind. And I’ve thought this over for a while now. I don’t think that opinion is changing.
I’m a bit of a recluse anyway.
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I’d go in a heart beat, at least i would get away from all the Light-pollution on this planet. If possible I would slow the trip so i could see the wonders of the Universe on the way to Mars. I’ll pay extra for a window seat.
Am I the biggest space geek among my friends/family? Check!
Would I love to visit other planets in our solar system? Check!
Would I leave behind _everything_ on this amazingly wonderful planet, permanently? Hell no!
If I was going alone, no. If there was a large group of highly skilled people going with me and I was just the average joe, then yes.
Then I’d prolly end up being the first guy to die on mars.
There was a plan like this in the 1960’s although it’s focus was going to be the Moon. Nicknamed the “Poor Slob” plan, it involved shooting a lone astronaut to the Moon on a one way trip. Scientific instruments, food, and other supplies, would be shot up to the solitary explorer while we back here on Earth tried to come up with ways to bring him home. It was considered to be a crash program but one that would insure beating the Soviets.
NASA never seriously explored that option.
“Poor Slob Plan Mark II” for Mars should be looked at in the same manner. The American public would never support such an endeavor, either through the private sector or though NASA.
In some sense we would be reducing a human being to a becoming like one of our robot emissaries. As good as they are our robotic scouts don’t return. Nether would this poor slob. His/Her remains would stay on Mars never to return home. People would never look at Mars in the same way. Just picture the way we would look at the Moon, if one of the Apollo flights never made it off the surface.
One could argue that those who tamed the Western US in the 1800’s never returned and brought everything they needed with them to survive. True, but we are not at that level yet. We’re more on the Lewis and Clark level than open expansion. And just a reminder Lewis and Clark’s expedition received govt. support.
The idea to go to Mars is not a stunt. Doing this would reduce it to the level of stunt or worse yet some sort of reality show. Going to Mars should be about exploring another world where none have gone before and come home with the riches of such exploration (in this case Martian rock and soil samples). Also to return with “traveler’s tales” to share with others and inspire them to reach further outward.
A one way trip is simply an absurd thought.
Mars has no magnetic field and the gravity is low. Our descendants on Mars would be weaklings compared to the Earthers from a 1G environment. Anyways, Total Recall taught us how crappy Mars would be with ruthless businessmen selling us air, and mutants because of cheap domes and no air to clean out the rays….
….But I’ve always been an advocate of “Getting your a** to Mars!”
not a chance…
humanity has spent generations setting up infrastructure and civilisation on Earth. I’m not giving that up!
A return trip: absolutely.. as long as I do something worthwhile during my brief stay there
This is an interesting article in the NY Times that speaks to this. He makes some interesting arguments. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/01/opinion/01krauss.html?_r=1
Short answer is yes, but I wouldn't go until later in life when the benefit outweighs the personal sacrifice.
Without doubt, remorse, regret, reconsideration; unabashed and unashamed: YES! My enthusiasm for departure increases exponentially with the deviation from origin.
Without doubt, remorse, regret, reconsideration; unabashed and unashamed: YES! My enthusiasm for departure increases exponentially with the deviation from origin.
In a word: Yes. I'd do it. Not for the fame or the glory. I'd do it because I would be able to help build the future of humankind. However, I'd only do it if I was accompanied by a group of people. There'd need to be a medical professional to do as much as possible, a botanist perhaps to engineer our veggies and fruits, a microbiologist in case we encounter usable or dangerous microbes. I'd also like an electrical and mechanical engineer and an astronomer, as well as a communications expert. Preferably everyone would have a varied (possibly multidisciplinary) background both professionally and personally. We could use the vessel as a habitat (think Skylab on steroids, on the surface), and we'd get our energy from the sun (as you do). I'd also take my *personal* computer loaded with a copy of Wikipedia, and my iPod, Bible, and something to remember my family by. Two way trip? Absolutely no thinking or contemplation required, where do I sign?
hi all
to start with , to be born on earth to be raised in an environment that one can not simply think or even ponder leaving this earth to go anywhere else, a life on mars, or a life time getting to mars is something that has to be thought of a lot meaning would you go now thinking that your family will miss you more, ?
but with all that out the way, would i go to mars i would consider it, how much would it cost, expecting it to be free, why should one pay for the loss of there own life, this is real life research , n.a.s.a shouldn't pass up the opportunity to use volunteers in such research that could make or break man kind
one post a guy said why would he give up on something that man kind has taken a thousand years to get to this point. well in a thousand more years earth may not be what it is today, it may require another thousand years to find a new home, so why not start now it might take another trillion dollars to get life living in orbit, whats it going to cost to send people to mars , you might have some change to bring them back even.
to be geared up for a man kind mission tick all the right boxes start sending people to mars go for gold cause if its not done tomorrow it will be done next week.
A decade ago, I would have said “in a minute”…but, a decade ago, I didn’t have kids.
These days, I’d have to think a bit. I suspect the answer would still be yes, but it would be contingent on my ability to pre-arrange some things for the future of my family.
(For a while in my childhood, I actually had a small bag of clothes and personal items packed in my closet because I had a wacky idea that NASA might call one day and want to put me on a shuttle, but need me to be ready to leave _immediately_.)
Yes, no question.
I’ve actually had a dream where NASA was sending out single man spacecraft as a sort of “seed” of the galaxy mission. I remember boarding my craft, and taking off. As soon as I broke the atmosphere and slipped into to space, I remember immense loneliness and fear overtaking me… but at the same time, wonder and excitement, the latter two emotions being much more prevailing.
It’s time to tackle mars, and I would give anything to be the man to do it.