Thoughts on Colonization

From: brooksn
> But in the case of Mars for example some minor tweaking could open the surface to plant life
> (agriculture) in a relatively short period of time, say 1 to 2 hundred years. In 500 to 1,000
> years humans might be on the surface with minor protection.

Yes, but where would High Frontier-type technologies be in 1 to 2 hundred year? In 500 to 1,000? An important point is that people investing their efforts in orbital habitats rather than Mars terraforming could, within the span of their own lifetimes, begin personally enjoying a home beyond Earth with conditions far more Earthlike than what even a terraformed Mars could offer only at the very end of the effort (at least 500 years by your own estimate).

> Considering the surface area of the Mars to be gained vs. the costs of some minor fiddling
> with the planet I would say the benefits outweight the costs of 'testing' what can be done
> with terraforming Mars.

You not only need to demonstrate that the benefits outweigh the costs. You also need to establish that another route wouldn't provide better returns more quickly.

In one of my articles (http://writings.mike-combs.com/case_spc.htm#Room_To_Grow) I assumed the first orbital habitat could be completed 50 years after the start of the project (NASA said 22 years). I assumed a doubling time of 5 years (NASA said 2). I also assumed only the near-term Stanford Torus design, ignoring the efficiencies which could be later achieved with larger Island-3 scale designs. In 190 years, we could still have built enough habitats to equal the entire surface area of Mars.

Regards,

Mike Combs