How're you guys?
How've the last 3 years been treating all of you?
Like, dang I have been super out of touch.
The main reason I came here actually, as well as to hopefully catch up with all of you guys again, was to get your opinions on the Mars One program.
I've been thinking of applying but there's a lot to be thought about before I do, even though applications close August.
I suppose I've been having conflicting feelings about how I'd feel even if it were successful and I were to be selected and I guess the best way to consolidate all those thoughts is to talk about it yeah?
For those who don't know, Mars One is that rumored not-for-profit project that aims to colonize Mars with 4 astronauts by 2023
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
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9 comments:
There are doubts as to its validity. The timeline seems iffy. 2023? That's only ten years. Seems like a bit of a stretch. If it does work, the rest of your life will be televised. On the off chance that it will actually happen, I think having cameras following you for the rest of your life is a very high price to pay, no matter how incredible it will be. And how's that going to work, anyway? If the audience finds that they don't like you once you're up there, what are they gonna do? Voting you out will sentence you to death. People are more likely to stop watching, meaning less money to keep the supply runs going. If it does go ahead, do you really want to have your life and dreams in the hands of a fickle audience? Leaving Earth is a dream of mine - my only dream, in fact - but this, to me, feels like the first step towards something like Running Man.
Aside from that, they're gonna need a fuckton of money to get up there, and that's just for the cargo missions. It cost NASA US$2 billion to get Curiosity up there. I watched the landing. It was beautiful. But if it costs $2 billion just to get a six foot rover there, how much more will it cost for a vessel full of humans? There's a lot of money in reality TV, but is there enough for a mission such as this?
Once you've landed, of course, there's two years of living and working with the same three people. I don't know how that would sit with you. I could do it, but lots of people couldn't.
I don't know, man. I think colonizing Mars is something we could do another decade or two later, but I think this particular project is a little too ambitious. I've been thinking about it since I heard about it last year, and I might sign up despite my skepticism, but I really do think that something of this magnitude is best left to people who have spent their entire lives preparing for something like this, or at least have a lifetime worth of applicable skills. Or robots. Robots are good for things like this. There's a lot for it and a lot against it. Think about it a bit more; dig around, see what you can find out, and then, if you still want to apply, go ahead. I'm with you either way.
Wouldn't it be cool if we found a Prothean device up there?
And another thing: did you see the emergency EVA on the ISS in the last couple of days? What if something like that happens? What if your peers freak out? It's terrestrial, I know, but the conditions are still extremely hostile, and it's entirely possible that your fellow colonists, while level-headed in training, will panic in a real world situation. Will you panic? Just another thing to think about.
is it really you guys??? Are you guys really here??? Sobssss RU kero misses you guys a lot. thanks for coming.
I hope you guys will come more often TT___TT
I guess if you can't reach for the stars you could just reach for the Mars....
holy shit...you guys.. you came backk... the tears are crawling down my face
also i saw rhiannon was tagged in a photo on facebook and was actually like 'omg its current information on her, she's alive' and i ran into nat and louis williams today. it's been a weird week for seeing or hearing from people i havnt contacted in ages.
i always say go for it! even if you dont get there, you'll get somewhere and experience wacky ass stuff. like the training and shit. the project might change over the years
I would like to point out, the conditions in space are exceedingly harsh and incredibly difficult to deal with scientifically. The problems that can arise from trying to sustain a colony on mars are massive. For example, the reason we stay safe from radiation on earth is our atmosphere, while it is true that rockets are protected against harmful radiation from the sun, the surface of mars will not be, in fact recent research suggests that even if people were to travel to mars, the amount of radiation they would be exposed to in the travel/staying there/returning would literally poison them by the time they returned.
Not to mention, the large amount of fuel and food that would be required by the crew, to travel there and back. The 2 year journey there would pretty much use up all the fuel that modern rockets can carry, just by space alone. In fact the only reason that the probe reaching our outer solar system is still running is a technique using the gravitational fields of large planets to speed up. Point being, a lot of fuel would be required, not to mention food and water.
Also, I would like to also point out, every single atronaut qualified to go on the ISS is an Aeronautical Space Engineer. They go through intensive study and programs to be able to work in space. As said it's an incredibly harsh environment, the mathematics alone is highly complex, not to mention requiring an immense amount of physics and materials knowledge, just to be able to run a space station, not to mention a rocket. Also, space is taxing on the human body, lack of gravity means muscle tissue density drops incredibly fast, hence why ISS missions have time limits of 3 months. Long times in space mean they are more likely to get cancer and other diseases, not to mention being extremely weakened when they return to a planet with gravity, after 2 years, you would barely be able to stand for longer than a minute, it would be that bad, at least on the ISS, they are still in orbit and massive weights on board can be used to keep muscle density from minimising too slowly, in empty space travel between planets, no such gravitational field exists. Also, the conditions of space mean people can get really very sick, astronauts physical and mental training is exhaustive, they use antigravity simulators and put their astronauts through high g level situations in order to make sure they can handle it, because on earth, we have 1 g, flying into space you have to deal with up to 8, so 8 times the amount of gravity in take off and landing, the pressure can kill you. It would not be surprising if after 2 years of travel, the stopping mechanism to land on mars be faulty, and you die at 10 g. Then there is re-entry, which is incredibly dangerous and doing it twice, on a planet with no runway, problematic, not to mention leaving.
Then there is the amount of space on the shuttle/colony, you would be restricting yourself to maybe less than 10 sqm of privacy for however long you were there, and as said, there is no guarantee on you coming back, so you and 3 other people in a very small amount of space for maybe 5/6 years.
In conclusion, this kinda seems too good to be true, the people that work at NASA and that are qualified as astronauts are literally the smartest people out, they usually have doctorates in highly complex engineering, and train for years, exceptional physical standards, etc.
Totally with you, just the website seems a little ignorant of the actual problems of space travel.
Blergh, hahaha sorry for taking so long to get back to you all :0
HEY RU, HUI AND EMILY
Umm, yeah I spoke to Rel last night and more or less the conclusion that I came to due to both my own research and my conversation with her is that I don't have much faith in the Mars One program, I'm not even sure if I'll post an application just because of how concerned I am about them acquiring funding to even take this to the second phase. Though, I will prepare myself for future opportunities, both physically and mentally. Which means after graduating from this course, who knows when, I'll either pursue a post graduate degree in a related field or look for opportunities to get my pilot's licence, which is what I wanted to do after I graduated from High School but didn't pursue because of the lack of opportunities in Australia.
and yeah, I'm more than well aware of all of the requirements and the natural dangers of space exploration and I think that I can do it. I'm particularly healthy, on my way to earning a worthy education and I feel like I have the selflessness and drive to accept that I could be put in very vulnerable positions if the cause was as worthy as paving the way for human colonization of other planets.
TL;DR, I think in time I could be the right person for the job, or at least I have the potential to be.
Holy shit i saw louis williams aswell this week, and now you guys wtf is going on
To go to space, you are going to need skills man. They aint just gonna put anyone up there- the more useful an asset you are the better....start studying and eating protein bars too haha
I wouldn't mind going.. i wanna experience 0 gravity outside of my dreams.
Try it man. And in the process of trying, you'll find yourself. Thats what i have to say- i did the same (not in space but) in japan and it worked out
p.s i thought i was the only one freaking out to see rhiannon on fb haha good good
Yeah bro, I agree with the others, it's literally too good to be true.
Now, as much as it sucks and as much as we want it to be otherwise, realistically there is almost zero probability any of us here are ever going into space, at least within the next few decades.
My advice is to stick to the idea of getting your pilot's license. That dream is way more tangible, and also way more likely to make a real impact on the world. Trend-setting astronaut it is not, but in a world where collectively probably less than a few hundred people have ever become one, it's no use getting upset that the next one won't be you. Plus, you definitely seem like the pilot type. I'd fly with you any day :P
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