Space Colonization

By Anya Gruteser

Space colonization is something everyone’s heard of. Prominent figures like Elon Musk have been talking about it for years, and new dates and breakthroughs are constantly being publicized. With our rapidly improving technology, living on other planetary bodies is actually becoming feasible. And with our list of reasons for why to settle in space growing longer and the list of what needs to be accomplished beforehand shortening, it’s possible that humans will live on another planet sooner than one might’ve expected.  

There are many reasons for space colonization. With a rising population comes competition for space and resources, and at some point, there will be too many people for Earth. In addition, space settlement could ensure the long-term survival of humanity. With threats like nuclear warfare and both natural and man-made catastrophes, like the recent worldwide pandemic, having colonies on other planets would ensure that if something ever happens to humans on Earth, the human species would prevail. Furthermore, with how fast the world’s climate is changing for the worse, the Earth may not always be habitable. Space colonies would open up places where people could go, and, maybe, with the reduced amount of people living on Earth, could help the Earth’s environment. Space exploration would also lead to additional natural resources and the spreading of life throughout the universe. But perhaps, at the root of all of this is the natural human urge to discover the undiscovered.

The three most discussed options for space colonization are Mars, the moon, and in-orbit spacecrafts. Mars is the only planet among all planetary bodies in our solar system that possesses the raw materials to support life and human civilization. The planet is rich in nitrogen, hydrogen, and oxygen, which are all in biologically accessible forms. Additionally, the planet has water in the forms of ice and permafrost, and it is estimated that if it was all melted, Mars would be covered in an ocean around 100 meters deep. Finally, from the point of view of an industrial society, Mars has many metals and elements of interest, such as sulfur and phosphorus, and because the geological history of Mars is similar to Africa, scientists are optimistic about mineral wealth. Mars has many energy sources as well. Solar panels can be utilized on the planet, and there’s potential for wind-generated power. Richer forms of energy include geothermal power resources and deuterium fuel that can be used in fusion reactors. Mar’s atmosphere is thick enough to protect crops from solar flares, allowing thin-walled inflatable plastic greenhouses to create cropland on the surface. And because Mars has the resources to make plastics, Martians could rapidly manufacture the domes and increase the area in which humans could grow crops and reside. 

However, Mars is far away: around 140 million miles from Earth. Many people argue that the moon would be a better space colony because of its proximity to Earth. This proximity lowers the cost of access, the fuel needed, and the mass requirements for crew transfer flights. A lunar cycler could make roughly a hundred round trips in the time a Mars cycler could make one. Furthermore, most of the technology needed exists already, and in case of a failure in a mission to the moon, Earth rescue would be a possibility. Finally, colonizing the moon would provide valuable information to increase the success rates in setting up other colonies. But establishing a colony on any planet would be difficult; the strange, new environments that don’t always have the necessary aspects and materials for human life would create a multitude of challenges. Therefore, some think that an in-orbit spacecraft would be the best option. The spacecraft would constantly rotate to create artificial gravity, and a large, concave mirror would focus sunlight as an energy source. However, technology would have to improve quite a bit to get to that point, and the British Intemplary Society predicts that humans would reach the moon three decades before any spacecraft could launch successfully. 

Just like anything else, space colonization comes with its challenges. A major one is the cost. It would take billions of dollars to improve and build the technology and send the ships. Currently, the price of sending one ton into space would cost anywhere from $100,000 to $140,000. Elon Musk predicts that the development of Starship, SpaceX’s reusable rocket ship that’s currently in progress, would cost around $10 billion dollars and that setting up a colony on Mars would cost, at the lowest, $100 billion. However, that price could span up to $10 trillion. But there are even more costs after a colony is established. Spare parts would have to be supplied and systems that would extract water and create gases for humans to breathe would have to be kept running. Furthermore, while a colony would be ideally self-sufficient, sending water for just six people for an entire year would cost $2 billion dollars, and that’s not mentioning food and oxygen. 

Stresses to the human body also have to be accounted for. Living in reduced gravity could lead to bone and muscle loss and a dangerous build-up of pressure in the head, which in turn can cause temporary or persistent eye problems. Cosmic radiation can induce cataracts and an increased risk of cancer. There are also practical issues, like the fact that in lower gravity, materials like facial hair are more flammable. Mental health can also be affected because of sleep loss and loneliness. In 2007, a project was launched to gather data and help prepare for missions to Mars. It was named Mars500 and ended in 2011. Six participants were locked up for 520 days in a small sealed hatch less than 80m2 small. During the study, a skewed sleep cycle made one participant rarely around the rest of the crew, another developed signs of depression, and the third started to suffer from cognitive impairment. While the participants emerged largely healthy, the long-term confinement significantly altered some of their physiology. 

It’s important to note how humans would change in these space colonies. The colonies would develop unique cultures and most likely new languages. Humans would also evolve new physical characteristics. Mutations would give way to new hair textures, skin types, statures, and maybe even bodies that are easier to move in low gravity. In the future, genetic engineering might even be used to form new organs like gill-like structures that draw oxygen out from carbon dioxide and ones that protect against cosmic rays. Cameron Smith, a professor at Portland State University, estimates that an initial colony of 2,000 people would begin to look and act differently in just 300 years. But that’s assuming that humans can reproduce in space, which, considering astronauts’ known health problems, is not entirely certain.

Space settlement comes with its own discussion of ethics. The word “colonization” comes with the history of Western nations enriching themselves through the exploitation and enslavement of others. And while it could be said that there are no “natives” on the other planets, there are microbial life forms. But space colonization would not only endanger them; without proper visions and agreements, a “contentious sphere of conflict” could be created around these colonies, according to Damien Willaims, a teacher and Ph.D. student at Virginia Tech. Additionally, while the competitive stance on expansion and exploration is not a necessarily bad thing, it raises questions like “who’s been brought in?”, “who’s been left out?”, “how?”, and “why?”. Therefore, as Williams said, “the values that we take with us into space exploration should be front and center.”

Space colonization is something we’re undoubtedly heading toward. However, it’s clear that there is still much that we need to improve upon and that we don’t fully understand. But with the world’s experts working on those problems, we will most likely have our first colonies in space soon. 

Works Cited

Keeter, Bill. “Space Colonization.” NASA, 4 Dec. 2018, http://www.nasa.gov/centers/hq/library/find/bibliographies/space_colonization.

Robson, David. The Expert Guide to Space Colonies. https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20141002-time-to-plan-a-space-colony. Accessed 24 Mar. 2023.

Space Colonization - New World Encyclopedia. https://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Space_colonization. Accessed 24 Mar. 2023.

“SpaceX Mars City: Here’s How Much Elon Musk’s Dream Would Cost.” Inverse, 29 Oct. 2019, https://www.inverse.com/article/58458-spacex-mars-city-here-s-how-much-it-would-cost-to-build.

The Space Review: Colonize the Moon before Mars. https://www.thespacereview.com/article/221/1. Accessed 24 Mar. 2023.

Wattles, Jackie. “Colonizing Mars Could Be Dangerous and Ridiculously Expensive. Elon Musk Wants to Do It Anyway | CNN Business.” CNN, 8 Sept. 2020, https://www.cnn.com/2020/09/08/tech/spacex-mars-profit-scn/index.html.

“Why Mars?” The Mars Society, https://www.marssociety.org/why-mars/. Accessed 24 Mar. 2023.

Williams, Matt, and Universe Today. The Future of Space Colonization – Terraforming or SpaceHabitats? https://phys.org/news/2017-03-future-space-colonization-terraforming-habitats.html. Accessed 24 Mar. 2023.