Could We Terraform Mars?

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Matt O'Dowd (1:00)

Thanks to LEGO, presenting LEGO City, for their support at PBS Digital Studios. Humanity's future is glorious. As we master space travel, we'll hop from one cold dead world to the next, terraforming as we go. Life will blossom in our path and eventually the galaxy will shimmer with beautiful earth-like orbs.

I mean, maybe. Sounds a little science fiction-y. But it wouldn't sound so far-fetched if we proved we could do it at least once. If we successfully terraformed Mars.

We already have the technology to bring humans to Mars and to set up small settlements. Or at least we could do within a generation. But those settlements will need to be cocooned, shielded against the deadly cold, the intense radiation and the fatal lack of atmospheric pressure.

Surely, if we want to thrive on Mars, to turn it into our second home, these settlers or their descendants will need to be able to open the airlocks, shed their space suits and step out onto a survivable surface. We'll need to terraform Mars as our first step to terraforming the galaxy. Terraforming Mars has long been a science fiction dream. From Kim Stanley Robinson's Mars trilogy, to Total Recall, to the Red Faction game series, to Elon Musk's Twitter feed. But what would it really take? How science fiction-y is the whole concept of terraforming? In the end it's a question of atmosphere. Mars' current atmospheric pressure is 0.6% that of Earth. And that means circulatory shutdown within a minute for an unprotected human. But it also means almost no greenhouse effect. Light from the sun, which has already fainted due to Mars' distance, is radiated directly back out into space. On Earth, that same light first bounces around in our thick atmosphere, heating it up. At an average of negative 60 Celsius, water freezes on Mars. But even if the planet were warmer, liquid water would still be impossible in that thin atmosphere. It sublimates directly from ice to gas.

And of course, Earth's atmosphere protects us from harmful cosmic rays and the most dangerous ultraviolet radiation from the sun. All of that bad stuff has a direct path to the Martian surface. So the most important step in terraforming Mars is to give it an atmosphere, ideally as close to Earth's as possible. In the imaginations of sci-fi writers, all we need to do is unlock the planet's latent potential. After all, Mars was once a warmer, watery planet with a much thicker atmosphere. I mean, that's conclusive. Our rovers and orbiters have found incontrovertible evidence of an ancient watery surface.

The hope then is that this water and the atmosphere that once supported it...

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When you need to build up your team to handle the growing chaos at work, use Indeed Sponsored Jobs. It gives your job post the boost it needs to be seen and helps reach people with the right skills, certifications and more. Spend less time searching and more time actually interviewing candidates who check all your boxes. Listeners of this show will get a $75 sponsored job credit at indeed.com/podcast. That's indeed.com/podcast. Terms and conditions apply. Need a hiring hero? This is a job for Indeed Sponsored Jobs.

SPEAKER_2 (4:30)

Close your eyes, exhale, feel your body relax, and let go of whatever you're carrying today.

SPEAKER_3 (4:38)

Well, I'm letting go of the worry that I wouldn't get my new contacts in time for this class. I got them delivered free from 1-800-CONTACTS. Oh my gosh, they're so fast.

SPEAKER_2 (4:46)

And breathe.

SPEAKER_4 (4:47)

Oh, sorry.

SPEAKER_3 (4:48)

I almost couldn't breathe when I saw the discount they gave me on my first order. Oh, sorry.