Earthlings on Mars: salvation or a chimera?
Why did I compare the dreams to colonise Mars to alchemy?
In my comment to “Newton’s Alchemy Notes” from the exceptional
, I sought for an example of contemporary “alchemy”, in the sense of a pseudo-science that promises much but brings little fruit, and pointed to the pursuit to inhabit Mars, so vaunted in the recent years. In the short note, I didn’t elaborate further. Questions from and inspired me to try and share more thoughts on human capabilities and obligations; discoveries which contribute to our progress, as confronted with projects which premises should rather be revised in the light of contemporary needs the human race is facing.The topic is widely discussed, and many cogent arguments have already been presented. From not so old readings let me point to two publications. The first is a short, but pertinent essay “Mars is a Hellhole”1 published in the Atlantic, written by
who also writes a relevant series , here on Substack. The second is “Whitey on Mars”2 by Andrew Russel and Lee Vinsel, published in Aeon.co; this one sheds a more social than a technical light.As an engineer, I often think about human possibilities and how they expand. Let me add a couple of personal reflections.
What did the Apollo 8 mission reveal?
The goal of Apollo 8 mission in 1968 was to fly a manned spacecraft in the lunar orbit, check how the crew and equipment perform in the gravitational field of the Moon, see the satellite up close, and return safely to the Earth; all this step towards landing astronauts on the Moon’s surface. Yet, what went down in history, was not as much the observation of the Moon, as the serendipitous photo of our planet, the only colourful object in the vast, intimidating darkness of the space.
Lunar module pilot William Anders, who took the photo, considered the realisation how unique and fragile the Earth is, as the greatest discovery of the mission.3
In another conversation, Anders emphasised our responsibility for the planet we are lucky to live on. He said:
“God has given mankind a stage upon which they perform. How the play turns out, is up to us”4
It doesn’t matter whether we believe in God or not. Substitute the word “God” with “Nature” and the meaning remains similar. More importantly, we must admit that our human performance, on the “stage” we are granted, has not turned out to be a masterpiece, so far.
Exploration vs. colonisation
Two years ago, when the multifunctional rover Perseverance landed on Mars, unpacked from its interior Ingenuity, a small helicopter, and the crew on Earth made the whirlybird fly, scientists, journalists and onlookers beamed with joy and hope.5 The success of the Mars mission coincided with the prospect of overcoming the covid pandemic, another proof of the power of science. By the sheer scale of dimensions with which the two realms dealt: from the nanometers of an mRNA molecule to tens of millions of kilometers to reach to Mars, it seemed that our resource and resolve covered the whole spectrum of challenges which the human race could face.
Exploration is innate to human nature. Toddlers left with blocks and no instructions, start building intuitively, while adults develop sciences to know more and to apply this knowledge in practice. It is good that we ask about the nature of the smallest particles, and that we try to reach, with landing probes or the sensors of the telescopes, far objects in the universe. Thanks to science, we can communicate electronically and cure more diseases. Curiosity, exploration, and seeking answers are good. But the application of science requires moral evaluation.
We can, and the most recent two hundred years have been iconic of our insatiable greed for demonstrating more and more power over Nature. From rapid industrialisation to destroying ecosystems, from the atomic bomb to the landing on the Moon. On unveiling artificial intelligence, we have got scared with the unpredictability of the monster we have created. A monster on the one hand, a beneficial tool on the other.6 Only recently, and this gives hope, questions about what actions we should choose from the vast toolbox of possibilities, are leaving the silent vaults of individual consciences and find a voice in wider debates.
We are able to do a lot, and at the same time we remain extremely vulnerable. Constant growth and expansion does not protect us, on the contrary, seems to make us more and more exposed. After millions of years of evolution, we are inextricably dependent on the environment which the Earth provides. A rise of the ambient temperature by several degrees can make a place inhabitable in the long term, slight variations in atmospheric pressure affect our wellbeing. Which way should we choose to adapt?
Is an escape to another planet a viable solution?
Take care of our future
We owe our Creator, either God or Nature, a bit of humility. Humans are not the Rulers of the Universe. We either got this unique, colourful, teeming with life planet as a gift, or we have evolved to live here. The humankind will not migrate to Mars as a whole; any attempt, if any, will “save” no more than a handful of the extremely privileged.7 The idea has been mocked pretty well in the recent Don’t Look Up! movie.8 Any Elon Musk or the like will not become a new Noah. The biblical sage reached the shore on the same land from which he had launched. And he did not build the Ark to become richer, in the first place.
We have a lot to do to save our only viable habitat. From everyone’s daily lifestyle choices, to smart solutions within local societies, to wise government policies, to global cooperation of states. We should harness all the science, from microbiology and nanotechnology to the conclusions from data obtained from James Webb Space Telescope, to find solutions how to help Mother Earth recover from the injuries we have inflicted on Her. We have the science; to succeed, we should not squander our efforts.
The most unsettling concern is that the unbelievable human technological abilities in the fields which are hard for most people to comprehend, come along with debilitating helplessness in social issues which ostensibly seem to be much easier to tackle. Global production of food is sufficient to meet the needs of the whole population.9 Wars and greed of the rich are the reasons of hunger in vast areas of the globe.
This discrepancy between the technological power and societal frailty, prompts the scope of work to be done. After the title of the mentioned movie, I dare to repeat: “Don’t look up!” Not in the sense “remain blissfully unaware”; but in the sense “all hands on board to stop competing and get down to rescue and restore our habitat!” Before we think how to expand the humankind to other planets, we’d rather master the art of taking care of the one under our custody.
Before we think how to expand the humankind to other planets, we’d rather master the art of taking care of the one under our custody
Takeaway outline
Humankind has achieved an unimaginably high level of technological abilities.
Progress in solving societal issues does not keep up the pace with technology.
The idea to cure the condition of the humankind, even in a distant future, by migrating to another planet, namely Mars, is an example of thinking so infatuated with tech, that it looses the wholesome view of the human nature.
Any other planet than Earth offers nothing more than a hostile, lethal environment, and humans have not evolved to live in spacesuits or hermetic capsules all the time.
With all the technological marvels on the workbench, we should put all efforts to save the Earth, and start living more collaboratively than competitively10. We are facing an emergency and we cannot afford squandering our resources.
There is no “philosopher’s stone”, and there will be no “planet B”. Let alchemy rest in peace in historical books. We have better science now.
If you have any thoughts on the above, please leave a comment. Your remarks may improve my future writing.
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“Mars is a Hellhole” by Shannon Stirone, The Atlantic 26 Feb. 2021
https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2021/02/mars-is-no-earth/618133/
“Whitey on the Moon” by Andrew Russel and Lee Vinsel, Aeon Essays 1 Feb. 2017
https://aeon.co/essays/is-a-mission-to-mars-morally-defensible-given-todays-real-needs
“Earthrise: A Conversation with Apollo 8 Astronaut Bill Anders”, official NASA Video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uFfFsOu7yqY
“Apollo 8: Around The Moon and Back”, official NASA video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wfd0oC3eFWw
Exact position of the citation: 4:02 of 5:46 total:
https://youtu.be/Wfd0oC3eFWw?t=243
“No, You’re Crying about a Helicopter on Mars” by Marina Koren, The Atlantic 19 Apr. 2021
https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2021/04/mars-helicopter-ingenuity-nasa/618635/
“A.I. Could Solve Some of Humanity's Hardest Problems. It Already Has.”
The Ezra Klein Show, 11 July 2023
https://open.spotify.com/episode/1xesVhrRcngCAqK5BmEbvf?si=f4d886b8eaa440e8
AlphaFold Protein Structure Database: https://alphafold.com/
See footnote 2.
“Don’t Look Up”, 2021
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt11286314/
“Feeding ten billion people is possible within four terrestrial planetary boundaries”
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41893-019-0465-1
“How many people can Earth actually support?”
https://www.science.org.au/curious/earth-environment/how-many-people-can-earth-actually-support
A great and unpredicted obstacle is the deranged barbarian, who sows death and destruction only for the sake of the delusions he has built up in his estranged mind. Whoever starts a war, these days, during so many emergencies to be addressed, proves that has not matured to have a say in the modern population. Unfortunately, there is no science nor a quick and effective way how to incapacitate such destructive relics.