LIFE ON MARS
With a very healthy space astronaut spending 438 consecutive days in space, and a planet of approximately 1/10th the mass of Earth, it may confirm that Mars would provide a less of a strenuous effect on the body compared with our planet, and therefore, guarantee a prosperous long-term benefits to the human race existing there. In any case, this is most probably decades away.
But even if scientists could develop an atmosphere on Mars conducive for human habitation, it still does not guarantee that the human body that has taken millions of years to evolve on planet Earth to where we are today, will not develop long term problems on existing on a planet with a much smaller total mass compared with that of Earth. How ever an attractive proposition it initially appears to be?
After years of colonising Mars, the human organism with a different form now of atomic behaviour, it may suddenly come to light that there are now several health issues:-
Could there be long term detrimental effects on human tissue?
Could there be long term neurological problems?
Could some women develop pregnancy complications for example?
HEALTH TESTING
No doubt a space astronaut will be health tested before and after back to Earth. But can this act as a definitive guide to the heath of civilisation after many years on Mars?
Even on planet Earth, there are still not health tests invented to measure some health issues here that could arise, let alone the potential health issues that could arise on habituating another planet such as Mars, especially after a number of years of existing there.
E.g, British marathon champion Paula Radcliffe, once ‘broke-down’ and came to a halt during such a race. She claimed she didn’t understand why, as all her many professional health tests, indicated she was fine. Sudden arrhythmic death syndrome is another example.
CONCLUSIONS
When assessing my arguments above - Why gamble? Lets spend all the time and money that would have been allocated to a 'Mars project’, for the benefit of addressing the now crucial environmental issues that currently exist on Earth.
INCIDENTAL
As a personal view that has nothing to do with my above arguments-we already know when considering our own Star system, it’s an incredible feet of mechanical engineering. To that end, I believe our planet is our eternal ‘spiritual home’.
M. E. Thorpe