It’s not like there aren’t quiet a few people on earth living such lifes. Most of them didn’t chose to though.
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Why not? To survive?
Yes, I am. I could get reading material over a data connection, I’d bring a telescope, computer programs are still perfectly capable of functioning, and anything with LAN capability could be multiplayer.
I’m in the navy: I understand my environment is not even a fraction as dangerous, but I do just fine in cramped places with little external simulation for extended periods of time. I love fixing things and troubleshooting things, so working on the equipment would be great.
It would be amazing to visit places with formations not possible on earth, places nobody has ever been before.
In short, yes, I would be both fine and content.
[quote=“AngryMarine, post:770, topic:445”]
I see people saying this kind of thing, but I seriously doubt 1% of them really understand how hard and dangerous it would be.[/quote]
I agree.
Life on Mars is going to be anything but boring. It’s going to be a tough fight for survival and then of improving the colonists’ lot. They’re going to go there with skills, tools and materials, and they’ll have access to unlimited supplies of CO2 and Martian soil. They’re going to learn, invent and build, and I doubt there’s going to be much boredom. In truth, I think they’re going to look back wistfully on their days on Earth when they could just sit around and be idle for a bit.
Don’t think going to Mars is simply a boring endeavor - it will be filled with challenges and a constant reminder that you are on another planet millions of miles away from home. And this is why we do it. Just like the time of Columbus (tip of the hat to Vikings who got to North America first) the overwhelming belief was that the world was flat and that you would fall off the edge into the abyss. For many it was an insane sacrifice risking the unknown but we are explorers at heart - not all of us but a great many. Because there is more than just sitting in a tube millions of miles away, it’s about expanding human experience and pushing outward to the stars; not to mention insuring mankind’s long term survival.
Of course you do have a point, a lot of people really don’t understand how hard and dangerous it will be. But there are those who do and are willing to go. In fact over 200,000 from over 140 countries signed onto going to Mars via Mars 1 which is still attempting to raise the money. And I would expect the numbers to be much higher now that Elon Musk is behind the endeavor. How many of those really understand the hardships they will face is anyway ones guess, but I would assume it isn’t simply a matter of stepping on a spaceship without meeting some basic physiological evaluation. After all, astronauts understand the dangers of space yet there’s no shortage of applicants.
I agree the periods of boredom will be countered by the constant routine of maintaining the habitat and providing data for scientists back on Earth. Plus once people are on Mars it gives Earth the impetus to provide a continual support network between Earth and Mars ie. transfer stations, ongoing supply missions, more international involvement, better communications infrastructure etc.
The first few missions will be rough as hell, but if it works in the long run then it will become a huge stepping stone toward a true interplanetary society.
Going to Mars would almost be like returning to a simpler way of life, though with the benefit of modern technology.
On Earth, we choose a job based on our interests and skills, but not many of those jobs actually benefit us other than providing money to live. The purpose of the job is to support the society you live in.
In a Mars colony, you would have to work every day, but your job means something. Yes, you’re still supporting the society you live in, but because it would be so much smaller and more dangerous, it becomes about survival. If you don’t all do your bit, you will suffer. And I don’t mean just having your wages docked. I would certainly be much more invested in my work and probably have higher satisfaction from completing tasks.
It wouldn’t be so much about work-life balance, as it is here. The two would blend together - you work to live.
As I started with, it’s almost back to a modern version of a primitive way of life.
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There are already a bunch of people here on earth that “work to live”. It is called “not starving”.
I think most of you guys really don’t understand the timescales here. The people in the missions in the first few launch windows would have to be stuck in those harsh prison like conditions for a decade or two before their day to day could even begin to resemble their life on earth. This “sense of exploration and adventure” would really die out after a few years when you realize you haven’t really explored anything in the past year, and that all you really do is fix machines and try not to die.
Sure, the first launch window or two would be exciting, with people signing up to be the first, to be in the history books, to be famous. But after a few “mishaps” kill some people and the reality shows about Mars end up showing the true reality about what it actually means to live there(it is not a vacation), the desire to go will really drop.
Not a lot of people have 200 thousand bucks and the desire to risk death, abandoning everybody they know in order to go live in a prison just for “the sense of wonder and exploration”. A ton of people would say they want to(I’m looking at you guys too), but when confronted by the reality they would back down.
All the replies here have valid points, but most of them evaporate when you realize we are talking about decades, not years. Anybody can stay a year without seeing their friends/family, or doing X or Y, but try a decade(or 3) without X or Y or Z … etc. Most people would go nuts, and I doubt 10% of them would still want to stay after so long, even thought they might not regret going in the first place.
I believe a colony with a few thousand people is certainly possible, but for a self sustaining 1 million people colony to happen… I’m not sure what would have to happen to allow that. I guess only something like finding a big gold mine on Mars would do the trick, with people actually being paid to go there or something. Or Mars becoming this big vacation colony, with most people living there to tend to the tourists, which would only make sense if the trip cost was reduced even further.
And comparing this to people moving to America after it was discovered is nonsense, There was an economical reason to send people there, and your life after the trip had the potential of being better.
If given the chance to go to Mars in the 2030’s-40’s then I would go in a heart beat.
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I don’t have time to write more, but ironically a large gold mine wouldn’t even be worth it since it stills costs more to send a kg to orbit than gold is worth. Economically right now there is 0 incentive. You’re relying on people who want to start a second basket of humanity and that’s the only value there.
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Why are you assuming an arbitrary 1-1 ratio for ‘stuff launched into space’ to ‘stuff returned to earth’ ?
For value? I have no idea. I’m just the guy who understands rockets not people. 
I guess you could look at it like the cost to reach Mars and return was already paid for by the trip there so everything returned is complete profit? I dunno. Economics is hard.
There was a pretty great thread on /r/spacex a week or two ago about the economics of a Martian Colony asking how the people on Mars would pay for everything they need like equipment for mining, propellant production, power, etc. From what I read and common sense says there wouldn’t be much to export.
I’m not arguing against Mars or even the economics of it. I’m 100% supportive of it. Looking from a first principles perspective it’s necessary. Humanity is close to harnessing the all the inherent energy and raw materials of the Earth and the only way to continue to expand is to find new supplies. More more more is what we’ve always been. It’ll be interesting to see how we work out.
Chinese Astronauts Dock with Tiangong-2 Space Lab
Artist’s illustration of China’s Tiangong-2 space lab docked with a crewed Shenzhou spacecraft.
Credit: China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation
Astronauts Jing Haipeng and Chen Dong, the crew of China’s Shenzhou-11 mission, salute and wave from inside the country’s Tiangong-2 space laboratory after arriving at the mini space station on Oct. 18, 2016. The astronauts are flying a 30-day mission to the space lab, China’s longest human spaceflight yet.
Credit: China Manned Space Engineering Program
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отрыв от земли
Liftoff! Soyuz Rocket Launches US-Russian Space Station Crew Into Orbit - space.com
Spectactors watch as a Soyuz MS-02 rocket launches American astronaut Shane Kimbrough of NASA and Russian cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Andrey Borisenko, both of Roscosmos, into orbit from Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan on Oct. 19, 2016. The trio is beginning a four-month mission to the International Space Station.
Credit: NASA/Joel Kowsky
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I’ve always wished the Japanese would begin their own manned flight space program. They certainly have the technical abilities and the money. Their policy of sending probes has paid off dividends scientifically but it doesn’t inspire. Guess it’s pointless, they would probably build a rocket capable of sending people to space but have robots board them instead. 
Either that, or they just can’t decide which gundam to build for space flight.
Gold is 3 times more expensive than the cost to send it to space today on an expendable Falcon 9. Imagine when SpaceX cuts the cost by 10 times or more.
But no, I don’t think it is likely we could find a mine on mars that would justify the trip. Even then.
Also, Elon Musk will be doing an AMA in 4 hours on reddit. https://www.reddit.com/r/spacex/
From Earth to LEO sure but from the surface of Mars? Currently that cost is priceless. I’m not here to argue about the economics of it though, it’s not my expertise. I’m on your side anyways but someone needs to play devil’s advocate.
Thanks for the heads up on the AMA! Tragically I’m in an airport and my plane boards in 45 minutes…I’ve been in bfe Mexico this last week and I had no idea it was scheduled! I knew it was supposed to happen…when did a date/time get announced?
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I was thinking the same thing regarding Mars gravity, that it might be feasible given they are making the trip anyway. But my understanding is asteroids are suppose to have quite a lot of gold so they maybe even more profitable to mine.
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Absolutely in the future. So much so that asteroid mining will probably crash the precious metals market on Earth. The amount of resources soley in our solar system is mindboggling for lack of a better word. I’ve been saying for a few years that the first trillionaires will be asteroid miners and I still believe it.
That being said it’s far in the future. This will happen alongside/after the beginning of any Mars colony. For a solar system wide economy to begin it requires better space tech to grow. This is the forcing function that Musk mentioned in his speech. The need for better transportation, more resources, more people, etc for the colony will force the tech to improve to allow the rest of it to happen.
Edit: the answers in the AMA from Elon are fantastic if you’re into this stuff…I’m sure articles will show up tomorrow and trough this week summarizing it but I’ll probably give a summary of the gist later when all his responses are in. Maybe by tonight but more likely tomorrow night, I’m preparing for an interview in the morning.
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