The future of the Human Species - Part 3: How do we engineer an
Earth-like environment?
The process of making an unearthly world more earth-like for the
purpose of supporting human life is called teraforming - Steven
Wintergerst.
Teraforming Mars is the only way we, humans can live and
reproduce thus starting all over again on the red planet. As
stated above, teraforming transforms any world unlike Earth into
an inhabitable place for humans. Of course we cannot convert
another planet, Mars for example, 100% into Earth. However Mars
must resemble Earth in the following aspects: 1.Thicken the
small existing atmosphere and make it comprise the important
gases required for life, in their needed volume. 2.A new
magnetosphere should be set up. A magnetosphere will protect
inhabitants and every other object on Mars from being beamed
with cosmic rays from outer space. All lives are in danger of
being destroyed by cosmic rays as they may destroy DNA bonds of
common life. 3.Make the temperature more or less similar to that
of Earth. As you know, Mars is colder than Earth as the red
planet is further away from the sun that Earth is.
Some issues however cannot be changed. The main ones are:
1.Gravity of Mars is much lower than that of Earth. If ever
humans settle there, they will have to cope with this. They will
use much less effort to move about on Mars. But they will then
be condemned to stay there unless they exercise regularly. This
is simply because their muscles will become weaker and weaker
and smaller and smaller in size. These muscles will not be able
to cope with the much larger effort needed to walk on Earth.
2.Mars is dead. They are no forests nor any bush. In fact there
are no greens. Mars is forced to remain as this unless we
re-melt its core (that