Scientists Agree They Can’t Terraform Mars, While Elon Musk Is Sure That’s Still Possible

Scientists Agree They Can’t Terraform Mars, While Elon Musk Is Sure That’s Still Possible
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According to recent NASA-funded research, there’s no chance to terraform Mars, at least not with the current technology. However, Elon Musk is still dreaming of the first Mars colony and sees the Red Planet as a future place where people can live.

Terraforming a planet, according to the scientists, involves changing its ecosystem, starting with the atmosphere, so humans can live there without using life support equipment.

As for Mars, under the current conditions there, a human without the proper equipment would die within the first hours on the Red Planet because the low atmospheric pressure would disrupt human’s organs out of the body. Besides, there’s no oxygen whatsoever on Mars, and the temperatures would freeze you up. If you avoid freezing, you will get burnt by the high-level UV radiation.

The recent study, sponsored by NASA and recently published in the Nature Astronomy journal, revealed that, with the current technology, it is not possible to terraform Mars.

NASA study showed that scientists couldn’t terraform Mars, but that’s not good enough for Elon Musk

According to the survey, the Musk’s plan to increase the Red Planet’s atmospheric pressure using the CO2 trapped in the planet’s atmosphere by launching nuclear missiles is incorrect just because there is not enough carbon dioxide to achieve that.

Even if that were possible, the increase in pressure wouldn’t be enough to help humans survive on Mars.

The research reached such a conclusion after reviewing 20 years of Mars observations. However, that wasn’t enough to make Elon Musk rethink his ideas and approach regarding the Red Planet.

According to Musk in a recent post on Twitter, there’s more than enough CO2 on Mars to terraform it. However, Musk didn’t present a study to back up his arguments.

As reported in the NASA’s recent study, we don’t have the technology to terraform Mars, but Elon Musk plans on sending the first manned mission to the Red Planet in 2024, so many technological achievements might happen by then.


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