Caleb Kuhnell

Professor Freeland

ENG 1201

March 18, 2022

How could humans colonize Mars?

Space travel is a concept that has intrigued humans for thousands of years. From the

discovery of the solar system in the 17th century to the international space race in 1955, we have

been fascinated with the possibility of visiting other planets. In the past, the goal has been

exploration and education, but recently there has been speculation about residential missions into

space. Mars is considered the best candidate for colonization. It is one of only 3 terrestrial

planets in our solar system and has the most habitable climate compared to Earth. This raises the

question: how would humans colonize Mars? There are tons of working theories about the best

method of space exploration and the journey into interplanetary living, constantly being

influenced by new technological advancements. Overall, reusable rockets, armored habitats, and

a self-sustaining agriculture system would allow humans to colonize Mars most efficiently,

allowing us to become an interplanetary species and delay human extinction.

Mariner 3 and 4 were the first two missions designed to explore Mars. They were

identical spacecraft made to take flyby images of Mars’ surface and were both launched in 1964.

Mariner 3 experienced difficulties during the journey and didn’t reach Mars, but Mariner 4 was a

success and carried out an 8-month voyage, during which it captured the first close-up images of
another planet. Since the launch of Mariner 4, there have been 50 other missions to explore

Mars, including 5 rovers that landed on the surface to collect data. These missions discovered

things thought to be impossible, ancient volcanoes, massive ice caps, and an atmosphere capable

of being altered to sustain life. Most recently, the “Perseverance” rover touched down in

February of 2021 and is collecting data to support the existence of past or present life on Mars.

The samples that Perseverance collects will also “help advance our knowledge of how future

human explorers could use natural resources available on the surface of the Red Planet. An

ability to live off the Martian land would transform future exploration.” (NASA).

One major aspect of colonizing Mars is establishing a stable food source. While the

astronauts could transport food with them, this would be costly for both storage and weight. With

current technology, the best way to get food would simply be by growing crops. Soil samples

collected by rovers like “Curiosity” show that Martian soil contains nutrients and would likely be

able to support plants. In addition, NASA is developing a replication of the soil on Mars, to

better our understanding of Mars’ potential for growing plants (NASA). Being able to

experiment with agriculture using resources available on Mars allows us to see what it’s like

growing plants in a Martian environment, so the astronauts aren’t going in blind. NASA is also

conducting an experiment about plant growth on the International Space Station. Titled Veg-01,

the experiment uses “pillows” of seeds to grow plants while in orbit. A single pillow is

harvestable for roughly a month after activation and is about the size of a paper clip. Having such

a high crop yield out of a tiny packet would be extremely beneficial for storage on a mission to

Mars.

Storage space isn’t the only reason that farming is superior to transporting packaged food

rations. Fresh fruits and vegetables are a great source of vitamins and antioxidants, having that
type of fresh food while in space would benefit the astronaut's mood, while also providing some

extra protection from radiation (NASA). In addition to tasting better than a year-old ration, the

nutrients provided by organic food could improve the astronauts’ performance as a whole. Living

in an enclosed space doing repetitive tasks has a damaging effect on the mental health of the

astronauts. Stimulating activities like exercise or growing plants also help to improve their

emotional state. Aside from being necessary for life, the plants serve as a reminder of home, and

“Having something green and growing--a little piece of Earth--to take care of when living and

working in an extreme and stressful environment could have tremendous value and impact”

(NASA). Plants require a lot more than just soil to grow, luckily Mars’ atmosphere mainly

consists of CO2, with traces of argon and nitrogen, so if we compressed the atmosphere we

would be able to grow plants (Musk).

In addition to the issue of food, comes the issue of water. Mass amounts of water would

be needed to sustain the colony, not only for drinking, cooking, and hygiene but also for taking

care of plants. Scientists still aren’t 100% sure whether or not there is flowing water on Mars, but

one thing they know for certain is that there is an abundance of frozen ice caps scattered around

the northern and southern poles of the planet. There are also pockets of ice in areas underneath

the surface. Although, the water found on Mars is a lot different than the water on Earth. Earth’s

water is just two hydrogen atoms bonded with an oxygen atom, while Mars’ water is a regular

water molecule mixed with carbon dioxide and frozen into a single mass. There’s also water

found inside some of the terrains on Mars, the rocks are formed in layers, and small amounts of

water become trapped between them (NASA). The water in these rocks can be extracted through

the process of crushing and then baking the rocks. The water then evaporates and is able to be

condensed and then collected. The water can then be used for anything from cleaning to watering
plants. While water and soil are crucial, the plants wouldn’t be able to survive in the sub-zero

temperatures, so it would require a climate-controlled greenhouse. This leads to another key

concept of colonization: a habitat capable of protecting the colony.

Mars’ terrain is extremely harsh in comparison to Earth. There are violent sandstorms,

destructive “Marsquakes”, and extremely high levels of radiation (Huchel). Not to mention the

average temperature is around “-80 degrees Fahrenheit” (NASA). One of the most commonly

supported methods of building a habitat on Mars is to construct it in sections or “pods” and link

them together with sealed pathways stretching out to all major areas. Ideally, these pathways

would connect hundreds of modules, eventually creating a network the size of a modern-day city.

Obviously, the colony wouldn’t immediately start on such a large scale. The initial habitat would

be smaller, and only have space to account for necessities (farming, storage, living quarters, and

any needed laboratories). While most books or movies show astronauts to be living on the

surface of the planet in a wide-open space, this is not a realistic depiction. The optimal location

would be near a crater or another area surrounded by terrain. This would provide some shelter

from the elements to prevent damage to any buildings or people.

Even at a lower elevation, the harsh environment can be very destructive and a natural

disaster could compromise the entire colony, so the goal is to create automated habitats that can

respond to and fix issues while protecting the astronauts and their work inside (Huchel). The

RETH (Resilient Extra-Terrestrial Habitat) Institute at Purdue University is experimenting with

the use of autonomous robotics to identify and resolve any technicalities or issues that arise

regarding the habitat (Huchel). The use of these robots would greatly increase the safety of the

astronauts by removing some of the main threats to the integrity of the habitat.
 The habitat would not only protect astronauts from natural disasters, but also radiation,

and freezing temperatures. Mars’ atmosphere is rich in carbon dioxide, which can be filtered and

converted into oxygen. This provides a steady supply of fresh breathable air to pressurize the

habitat or use in spacesuits. NASA has developed a prototype of this air filtration device and

equipped it on the Perseverance

rover. The device is called MOXIE

“and it has proven for the very first

time that we can extract oxygen

from the carbon dioxide in the

martian atmosphere” (NASA). A

scaled-up (200x) version of the device on the Perseverance rover would be enough to supply an

entire colony with breathable air. The oxygen from the larger MOXIE would also be used for

rocket propellant (NASA). Maintaining a connection with Earth is another important part of the

development of a Martian colony.

Arguably the most difficult, yet crucial aspect of space exploration and colonization is the

means of transportation. All of the Mars missions to date have been one way, and don’t return to

Earth. The distance from Earth to Mars is approximately 170 million miles at any given time,

and the journey between the two planets takes about 7 months one way. The length of the trip

increases the difficulty and shrinks the margin for error drastically. If a problem occurred, a

rescue mission couldn’t be sent for a considerable amount of time. As a trial run of sorts, NASA

has developed plans for the Artemis missions, in which they will “collaborate with commercial

and international partners to establish the first long-term human-robotic presence on and around

the Moon.” Then they’ll use the experience from the moon to guide them into the first steps of
putting humans on the surface of Mars (NASA). NASA is taking the necessary steps to ensure

safety while also making advancements toward the first colonies. One of the most prominent

commercial space travel organizations in the world, SpaceX, has also been experimenting

publicly with launching rockets, and safely landing them on Earth again to be reused. They’re in

the process of developing “a fully reusable transportation system designed to carry both crew and

cargo on long-duration interplanetary flights” (Musk). The concept of multi-use rockets is

revolutionary for space travel and will potentially allow for multiple missions to Mars at a

fraction of the cost.

Similar to the returning capabilities of the SpaceX rockets, Acta Astronautica proposes

the use of cycler orbits around both Earth and Mars to create a sustainable taxi system to

interchange crews on and off of both planets (Pelle). The reduced amount of fuel, infrastructure,

and overall costs would “allow for more frequent transfer between the planets” (Pelle). The

cyclers wouldn’t have to change the crew out every time, they could also serve as a supply run to

astronauts. The renewal of vital resources would allow the astronauts to stay on their missions

for longer periods of time. This improvement in the colonies’ connection with Earth would

increase the rate of advancement for the colony drastically, allowing the development of large-

scale Martian cities sooner.

In addition to space travel, travel on the surface of Mars is also necessary. Small

distances could be covered on foot, but this wouldn’t be sufficient for a longer expedition. For

longer journeys, manned rovers similar to the models currently used on Mars would allow

astronauts to travel further distances, while also being somewhat sheltered. Discussion about the

use of these rovers also initiated opinions and theories that were in complete contrast to the

concept of a stagnate colony. Those who are against the idea of a stationary habitat propose the
use of pressurized rovers with living space and an onboard laboratory. The rovers would be used

“Much like an RV…(and) will have everything inside that the astronauts need to live and work

for weeks” (NASA). The rovers would be a separate module released from the spacecraft and

could support the astronauts for about a month. The idea behind these is that in place of one

long-term colony, there would be various missions exploring and collecting data for a short time

while only living in the RV. This equipment would be useful during a short trip, but in the long

run, having to return to Earth after just a few weeks would only delay the process of

colonization. The rover technology would be more suitable as a separate option from the habitat.

Astronauts could use the habitat as the main hub for their work, and only use the RV rover for

short trips to collect samples or survey the surrounding terrain.

Another alternate method of colonizing Mars is to create less protective habitats, and then

use nuclear weapons on the surface of the planet to super-charge its atmosphere into becoming

warm enough to live in. Elon Musk is the primary advocate for this option, “explaining that

vaporizing Mars' ice caps would be a good way to warm the planet enough for human colonists

to live relatively comfortably” (Wall). Musk is suggesting that we cause a massive spike in the

temperatures, while simultaneously removing the largest sources of water on the entire planet.

While using nuclear weapons would eliminate the issue of sub-zero temperatures, It would also

create the issue of dealing with extreme levels of radiation on Mars, even higher than they

already have become naturally. The initial explosion and resulting blast would also cause

significant damage to both the surface and the substructure, which would more than likely

compromise the stability of the planet. Ironically, Musk also proposed a much safer alternative,

which would be to develop a secure initial colony and then create tons of orbital mirrors to
reflect the sun's rays to heat up the planet (Wall). These satellites would act as an “artificial sun”

allowing us to alter the temperature of Mars as needed.

At the current stage, Mars colonization is largely based on speculation and the

preparation for future missions when technology catches up to the ambition of humans.

Interplanetary living is a complex concept and the risks are extremely high, but so is the reward.

There are countless theories, but the most efficient way that humans to colonize mars would be

to have the astronauts survive on a farmed food source, living in heavily protected and climate-

controlled habitats while conducting research on more efficient means of exploration, travel, and

living overall. Space cyclers would be used to shuttle supplies and data from Earth to Mars and

vice versa. Over time the colony will advance in both size and accessibility, creating a connected

society between multiple planets, and ultimately decreasing the likelihood of human extinction.

Works Cited

Dunbar, Brian. “Mars Exploration.” NASA, NASA, 13 Feb. 2015,

https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/mars/main/index.html.

Hall, Loura. “6 Technologies NASA Is Advancing to Send Humans to Mars.” NASA, NASA, 16

July 2020,

https://www.nasa.gov/directorates/spacetech/6_Technologies_NASA_is_Advancing_to_

Send_Humans_to_Mars.

Huchel, Brian. “How Would You Survive on Mars?” Purdue In Space, Purdue

University, 2017, https://www.purdue.edu/space/features/mars-25-20194.php.

Acta Astronautica, vol. 154, Jan. 2019, pp. 286–294.,

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actaastro.2018.04.034.

Musk, Elon. “Mars & Beyond.” SpaceX, SpaceX, 22 Feb. 2022,

https://www.spacex.com/human-spaceflight/mars/.

“NASA's Mars Exploration Program.” NASA, NASA, 3 June 2014,

https://mars.nasa.gov/#mars_exploration_program.

Wall, Mike. “Looks like Elon Musk Is Serious about Nuking Mars.” Space.com, Space, 21 Aug.

2019, https://www.space.com/elon-musk-serious-nuke-mars-terraforming.html.