Colonize Mars by when? The dream of establishing a human colony on Mars dates back several decades , and it will probably be at least as many decades before we see it come true. But the immense technical challenge posed by human exploration of Mars has not deterred scientists from outlining optimal strategies for long-term habitability on the Red Planet.
The latest of ideas regarding potential bases on the surface of Mars is currently under development at the Swiss university École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL). This concept focuses on the construction of an igloo-like structure at the north pole of the planet in whose design, ice and dust could be harvested to supply water, fuel and construction materials for the future base.
“ The poles may pose more challenges at first , but they are the best long-term location, as they host natural resources that we can use,” EPFL’s Marlene Rüede said in a statement.
The modular structures of this igloo design – a core, capsules and a dome – would be built in advance with robots from materials in situ . The pressure-sealed dome would be covered with a three-meter-thick layer of ice to insulate and protect it from radiation and meteor impacts, which are common on the Martian surface.
Here’s how mission planning would go. First, the robots would fly alone to the Martian north polar region to create a small living space for the crew and explore locally available natural resources.
The crew would come later.
Once the living spaces and life support systems are in place, scientists envision a six-person human crew traveling to the planet during the Martian summer , when sunlight is abundant for solar energy production (remember that the The Martian calendar has more seasons than the Earth calendar, because the Martian year is 687 Earth days long).
During the second mission, the astronauts would use a kind of crane system that would orbit around Mars and move equipment from spacecraft to the planet’s surface. The crew would spend an additional nine months developing the artificial habitat. Some supplies would have to be sent from Earth, yes, and would be intercepted in the orbit of Mars by a local spacecraft powered by Martian resources.
Like Lockheed Martin’s Mars base camp design or SpaceX’s Mars colony concept, the EPFL-designed habitat is intended to anticipate the best procedures for establishing a long-term human presence on Mars. However , it remains to be seen which project will be finally chosen.
“We would have to carry out an initial mission to test everything for the first time,” Rüede clarified. “And the more you think about the initial mission, the faster we can get things going and move on to colonization.”
The study has been accepted for publication in the journal Acta Astronautica . It was also presented last week at the International Tourism Talks of the Future conference in Vixouze, France.
Image Credit: Copyright EPFL
