Before considering a mission to Mars, it's critical to understand the risks involved. To date, 14 astronauts and 4 cosmonauts have perished while in space. In the course of training or testing for spaceflight, another 13 astronauts or cosmonauts have perished. Technically, only three of these fatalities took place outside of the Kármán line, in what is usually referred to as "space," beyond the Earth's atmosphere.
The Daily Mail reports that some scientists worry that sending astronauts to Mars will lead to more fatalities. Elon Musk, the head of SpaceX, is among them, claims Space.com. "I think the first Mars expeditions will be quite dangerous. There is no getting around the fact that there will be a significant possibility of dying "Mr. Musk said. "In essence, it would ask, "Are you prepared to die?" If that's OK, you are qualified to go."
NASA and SpaceX are reportedly working hard to send astronauts to Mars in order to settle the planet, according to SciTechDaily. Space agencies have been focusing on Mars, the next closest astronomical body that humans might make the effort to examine, since successfully landing on our nearby Moon.
Earth's space agencies have been attempting to send unmanned missions to Mars for many years. Even with an abundance of probes and remote-controlled rovers, we have visited Mars relatively frequently in recent years. Additionally, we've tried using human astronauts before and failed a lot. Popular Mechanics reports that 28 of the 47 missions to Mars have been unsuccessful.
Dangers of radiation
The risk of failure and human life loss on the journey outside our atmosphere outweighs the evident dangers of being on board of a massive rocket before it has even left Earth. A human-piloted mission to Mars will take about six months, according to SpaceX. This half-year of space travel will be lethal in and of itself due to the enormous amount of radiation that will enter the spaceship during the journey.
Astronauts may be subjected to radiation doses up to 700 times higher than they would be on Earth, where the protective effects of the atmosphere and magnetic field are present. A day in space exposes the human body to the same amount of radiation as a complete year on Earth, according to the ESA.
The ESA has been investigating ways to shield people from radiation from space by utilising particle accelerators to blast various materials with lithium. In the future, these materials might be able to insulate vehicles that spend a lot of time in space.
Is the colonisation of Mars a fantasy?
Even when astronauts land on Mars, radiation shielding will be necessary for long-term human health. Since Mars doesn't have a magnetosphere like Earth does, it has a thin atmosphere, as noted by Phys.Org. During its 2001 mission, NASA's Mars Odyssey spacecraft found radiation levels that would subject astronauts to 8,000 millirads (8 rads) of radiation annually. Chronic human exposure to high levels of radiation may result in disease, DNA damage, cancer, and death even though it is not immediately harmful.
Therefore, despite being the planet closest to Earth in our solar system, Mars is extremely unfriendly to not only human existence but nearly all life. Because of this, it is simple to understand why Neil deGrasse Tyson doubts that humans will be able to establish a permanent colony on Mars. He stated in an interview with Futurism that he is "pessimistic that you'll find legions of people who will fly there and want to remain."
It's one thing to travel to Mars for a short while. Long-term residence on Mars is a whole different concept. Neil deGrasse Tyson thinks it would be hazardous and probably impossible to send astronauts to Mars to live and possibly colonise it.
Tyson vs. Musk
Instead of conquering Mars, Neil deGrasse Tyson advised Jolene Creighton of Futurism to aim for "just an outpost." The rest of Tyson's explanation focused on how unlikely it is for humans to build the necessary "entire infrastructure in which you live that matches Earth."
"We'd rather remain somewhere warm and comfortable," T Tyson is not optimistic that humans will have a significant impact on Mars, but his viewpoint is very different from that of Elon Musk, the CEO of SpaceX. Musk still aspires to visit Mars and is constructing the SpaceX Starship for the voyage despite his assertions that early explorers must be prepared for the worst.
According to NPR, Musk intends to send the first cargo trips to Mars before the arrival of people in 2029, giving astronauts access to the materials and tools they will need to build the first facility. Who will be more correct regarding the future of human civilisation on Mars: Neil deGrasse Tyson or Elon Musk? We will all be watching this with interest as it unfolds. Yson clarified.
Reference: NPR, PHY.org, Futurism, spaceX, Popular Mechanics and Space.com
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