Will Mars Become Planet of the Apes?
December 28, 2009 Featured, Science
The Russians have been quite active recently with regards to their space program. A little over a year ago saw the start of the Mars-500 project, pitting six people in a sealed off capsule against things like boredom and cabin fever, and next they plan on setting their sights on the red planet. Unlike their American counterparts, the Russian program is planning on sending a living being to Mars in an effort to better understand the long term effects of cosmic rays before sending people. The living being, of course, will be a monkey.
According to the Telegraph, a monkey will be sent to our famous celestial neighbor with a robot sidekick that will, among other things, feed and monitor the primate. They don’t specifically state that the monkey will land on the planet, and I highly doubt that they would go through the expense of creating a system that could safely deliver an animal to another world only to contaminate the planet with our microbes and bacteria. That leaves me to believe that the Russian space agency would either have the monkey orbit around the planet a few times before making the long return trip home.
Naturally, animal rights activists will be up in arms about this kind of thing, and rightly so. Why should an animal with no desire to leave the planet have all the fun?
Decreasing the Surplus Population By Lottery
If space agencies around the world would like to better understand the long-term effects of cosmic rays on humans, perhaps it would be better to send a human. Sending a monkey will only tell us so much. If we were to send a person, then they would be able to tell us in words what they’re feeling and thinking. Sure, we could surmise this by monitoring a living creature and seeing how different they act in the vastness of space, but it wouldn’t be the same.
As we can see in the comments section of the Telegraph article, there are quite a few people that would be willing to sign up for the trip knowing that it could be a one-way journey. So long as someone would be willing to sign some kind of contract stating that they’re waiving their right to a “safe working environment” and that nobody will come knocking with a lawsuit should they die, then there would likely be millions of potential volunteers for such a project. Naturally, this contract would have to be worded very clearly, as such a thing would likely be considered illegal in most countries, but there will undoubtedly be quite a lot of financial compensation awarded to the family of whatever brave (or foolish) soul that would embark on such a trek. Not from the various space agencies, though, but from the media outlets.
Space agencies around the world are right now fighting for every last scrap of funding they can secure. The priorities of the science community are clearly different from the governments that fund them. However, if the people’s fascination with space is re-ignited like we experienced half a century ago, governments would be much more willing to divert funds from projects aimed at saving this planet in order to explore another. One way to do this would be to hold a lottery for the sole spot on the inter-planetary vessel. Not only would this create a revenue stream, but it would get people talking about the subject again.
Would You Go?
But then comes the question: who would go?
If the Russian space agency would consider sending a monkey, then the educational requirements of a human should be absolutely minimal. That said, they would probably need to have earned some sort of degree in science or engineering. There’s no point sending a person who can’t repair their own vessel if something goes wrong, right? On top of this, by sending a human we can carry some extra experiments to see the effect of cosmic rays on a whole host of other organic materials. Plants, seeds, food rations, blood packs, you name it. Not only will this help stave off the inevitable boredom the passenger would feel, but it would tell us just how much trouble we’ll have keeping the necessities of life going while traveling from planet to planet.
As for me, would I go? Only if I were single.
My needs would be rather minimal. I would want to bring about 4 TB of data from my personal NAS, which would have to come on Solid State Drives, as a spinning hard disk will not work properly without gravity. I’d want to have a really nice notebook … maybe two, in the event one breaks down. And I’d also want to have some of my favorite video games of all time in order to pass the time. Ah … and I’d need to have a year’s supply of clean underwear, or a way to properly wash and dry them while in space. That last item would actually be a deal-breaker for me.
While in space, I’d be able to write blog posts that could be sent back to Earth for (possible) submission online, play some video games, watch some movies, do some programming … heck, it would be just like my life back in Vancouver without the 9-to-5!
Sure, I’d probably get a little crazy while away from people for so long, and the cosmic rays will undoubtedly start to piss me off 6-hours after take-off with all the “sparks” in my eyes, but it would be an opportunity to get my name in the paper (in a good way) and to accomplish something for the greater good of mankind. If I make it back, I’ll be named a hero. If not, I’ll be named a hero beside others who have lost their lives in the name of science.
I’m not afraid of dying, per se. But I don’t want to just fade into obscurity if I don’t have to.
That said, the question still remains: Would you go to Mars, even if it were to only orbit the other world and return, knowing you might not be alive to see either of the two destinations?
Comments (2)
Thought provoking site. My colleagues and I were just discussing this the other evening. Also your post looks good on my old blackberry. And thats rare. Nice work.
You’d be like a pilgrim from the 1600’s. Watch out for them engines with Mars rocks.