MASDAR

WHY DO WE NEED A SPACE SETTLEMENT?

1. SURVIVAL

Stephen Hawking said in an interview for Daily Telegraph in 2001: “I don’t think the
human race will survive the next thousand years, unless we spread into space. There are too
many accidents that can befall life on a single planet. But I’m an optimist. We will reach out
to stars“ The primary argument that calls for space colonization as a first-order priority is as
insurance of the survival of human civilization, by creating alternative locations off Earth
where humankind could survive in the event of natural and man-made fatalities.

No matter how the death knell occurs, the world as we know it will cease to exist
someday. Either the planet will become unable to sustain life (possibly all life, possibly just
current life) or our civilization will break down, leaving those humans who manage to survive
limping along, less civilized than ever.

Possible Disasters:

1. Collision with a meteorite or other space objects

One of the most likely things to happen is objects falling from space. The history
from the dinosaur age could repeat. This can happen once again and our planet
could be destroyed by this and terminate humanity.

2. Almost collision with a meteorite

Another important and yet deathly thing that could possibly happen, would put all
of us in danger. In other words, collision with a meteorite could change the rotating
direction of Terra. It is one of the rarest cases, but, it could destroy us all.

3. Pollution

A less disastrous hazard would be pollution. It won't result a mass extinction like
an asteroid crash, but, it could generate lots of diseases, and it could even make our
planet impossible to live on. This pollution could damage the air and water, leaving
us with nothing to consume, this, being too dangerous for human being.

4. Many natural disasters

This factor may not be very likely to happen, but disasters such as: tsunamis,
earthquakes, floods, volcanic eruptions, etc could really kill us and our planet at the
same time. This case may be rejected, but, it could also lead to our planet's end.
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5. Fungus among us

The fungal threats may not sound scary, but, actually, they are scarier than any other
bacteria. As said by the curator from Museum of Zoology California, David Wake: "We've had
a new amphibian fungal disease that has just had devastating effects".

6. Nuclear War

Everyone is worried about one thing, the end of the world. Unlike in the “2012”
movie, the end of the world could be even more hazardous. One real factor that could
lead to our land could be the nuclear weapons many people possess. Of course, those
could represent a minor threat if they are in the hands of the right people. Many of the
World War II weapons could still be used up to this date. Even if they were fabricated up
to 77 years ago, they could still be lethal.

7. Overpopulation

Overpopulation fear has been present for centuries. People are still thinking that,
one day, we will be so numerous that we won't be able to live on the planet anymore.
That is why our space settlement would be our only salvation, as, we human beings wont
be able to survive living on another planet due to oxygen and gravity. On the other hand,
not everyone agrees to this idea. Some say that people are born and die, so that the cycle
of life ends for everyone. But, even with the given factors, we can't be sure about it. We
still need protection and a safe environment for the generations to come.

8. Nuclear bomb resulting black hole

Since the creation of the first atomic bomb in 1945 people thought that the power
of reactions could cause catastrophic problems. Up to this day, people still worry about it.
Since the fire of the Relavistic Heavy Ion Collider, people speculated that those could
create a massive black hole which could eat up the whole world. During the LHC
invention, same rumors started speculating.

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2. A BETTER FUTURE

Just imagine how amazing life would be on a space settlement. Having hundreds of
schools like Oxford or Cambridge, our learning facilities being very different from the ones
on Earth, making it more effective and fun. In other words, our children would have a better
future than the one we had, making our Space Settlement prosper. A future with space
settlement is vastly better than one without it.

Another argument would be the fact that on our Space Settlement there would be far
more resources than on Earth. For example:

 The energy we are about to use on our Settlement is 2 times greater than the one we
use on Earth, making things a lot more easier

 The asteroids have enough resources to help us build new things, for example the
asteroid Ceres. This means that our new home will come to greater realizations that Earth.

 The growth potential will be much greater than it used to be on Earth, our
settlement having much more chances to survive disasters and expand itself.

 Another great thing on our Space Settlement would be that we will be able to
resupply many materials from our planet, Earth, this thing, helping us gather much more
resources.

3. MUCH GREATER INDEPENDENCE

If on Earth we had to share everything from water to food and many other things, in
space, each colony will have its own resources, many enough not to have to share with each
other.

Another great thing will be the fact that each Space Settlement would be tens of millions
further than the other ones, this meaning that we won't have to live like we used on Earth,
next to each other. Even if some people don't agree with this it could be a positive thing, it
could stop wars or even small fights.

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In other words, with a few help from the asteroids and our new recycling system, we will
be able to construct Space Settlements which won't depend on each other or our actual
planet Earth to survive or even build a future up in space.

4. A MORE BEAUTIFUL ENVIRONMENT

We all agree that our planet Earth is one of the most beautiful planets in the Milky Way,
but, as we mentioned above, with time, even if we like it or not, humankind will destroy it
step by step, making it impossible to live on. Our Space Settlement’s environment will be
different, our children leaving in a healthier place, this helping their growth.

We’ll have beautiful parks, many zoos and aqua parks. In other words, life on our Space
Settlement will be lots of fun for everyone, and not only the kids will have the best time
ever, adults will have fun as well.

5.GET IN TOUCH WITH ALIENS

Another reason why we need a Space Settlement could be this one. Imagine how much it
would help us, befriending aliens, thing that we weren’t able to do on Earth. How will living
on a Space Settlement help this factor? Well, we all be living in space, giving us the
possibility to find any sign if they exist. Greater opportunity to discover space, planets,
asteroid belt and chances of finding life forms. This may take ages but, finding life forms will
lead us to much bigger opportunities like sources of oxygen, water, minerals and maybe
even a livable conditions.

Image Credit: http://settlement.arc.nasa.gov/Kalpana/Kalpana-10-Bb2-2500.jpg