What Would A Million Person Mars Colony Look Like

# Establishing a Colony on Mars: The Challenges and Possibilities

Before the dawn of the space race, humans have gazed at the stars and wondered what it would be like to live on other planets. Among those with optimistic views, many believe that humanity is destined to become a multiplanetary species. While Earth faces significant challenges, Mars stands as the prime candidate for establishing a second home. Though Venus also presents intriguing possibilities, eccentric visionaries like Elon Musk have already begun developing semi-concrete plans for building a functional permanent colony on Mars.

This article explores the immense challenges and potential solutions for sustaining a colony of 1 million people on Mars. By comparing the specifications of Earth and Mars, examining the differences in their atmospheres, temperatures, water availability, and more, we will delve into what it would take to create a habitable environment on this hostile world.

## Comparing Earth and Mars

Despite their obvious differences, Earth and Mars share some similarities. Both planets have similar rotation speeds, with one day on Mars being only about 44 minutes longer than a day on Earth. The axial tilt of Mars is also comparable to that of Earth, at about 25 degrees versus Earth's 23 degrees. This similarity results in Mars experiencing seasonal and temperature variations, much like Earth. Both planets are rocky worlds with metallic cores and similar mineral compositions. Their surface structures include mountains, canyons, and deserts.

However, the differences between the two planets far outweigh their similarities. The most significant difference is the Martian atmosphere, which is extremely thin—only about 1% of Earth's atmospheric pressure—and completely unbreathable for humans. Composed primarily of carbon dioxide (96%), with smaller amounts of argon (2%) and nitrogen (2%), and trace amounts of oxygen and water vapor, Mars' atmosphere offers no protection from the harsh environment.

Mars is also drastically colder than Earth, averaging -46 degrees Celsius, with brutal lows of -143 degrees in winter and highs of 35 degrees on the equator during summer. The planet is dry and dusty, frequently buffeted by sandstorms. Additionally, Mars lacks a reasonably sized magnetosphere—measured between 16 and 40 times weaker than Earth's—which leaves it highly susceptible to harmful cosmic rays.

Gravity on Mars is about 37% that of Earth, which may pose challenges for human health over time. The planet also faces the critical issue of lacking liquid water. While Mars has water at its poles, it is mostly frozen and nowhere near the abundance found on Earth. Any successful Martian colony would need to overcome these significant obstacles to establish a hospitable environment.

## Setting Up a Habitat

The first major challenge in establishing a Martian colony is creating a habitat that can support large numbers of humans while protecting them from extreme cold, frequent dust storms, and providing breathable air, safe drinking water, food production capabilities, and shielding against lethal cosmic rays.

One concept often envisioned for Mars is a large enclosure, such as a city beneath a big glass dome, which would provide light and protection from the elements. Elon Musk has suggested that this could be a viable formula for his Mars colony, envisioning a pressurized glass dome with parks and plant life to make the environment pleasant during the long process of terraforming Mars into a more habitable world.

To sustain such a colony, the settlement would need reliable power sources. Solar energy is a leading candidate, though it requires significant land area for solar farms. Given that Mars has vast open spaces, this might not be an insurmountable challenge. However, the colony would also need large energy storage units to handle frequent periods of darkness caused by violent dust storms, which could also damage solar panels.

## Food and Water Production

Food production is another critical area. Advanced hydroponic farms used on Earth could likely be adapted for Mars, as they do not require natural light or soil, making them ideal for underground construction. Martian colonists might need to adopt synthetic meat or entirely plant-based diets due to the challenges of transporting livestock and maintaining their health in such an environment.

Water is another pressing issue. Extracting carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and splitting it into carbon and oxygen could provide a source of breathable air, while water could be sourced by extracting ice from Mars' polar regions or through highly efficient recycling methods. NASA is currently investigating these possibilities, though the feasibility of finding enough subsurface water remains uncertain.

## Establishing Self-Sufficiency

To scale up to a population of 1 million, the Martian colony must become entirely self-sufficient. Relying on shipments from Earth would be both prohibitively expensive and risky if critical supplies were lost during transit. Developing technologies that work with the Martian environment is essential. For example, molten regolith electrolysis—a process that uses electricity to break down silicates into base components—could create metallic alloys for construction while simultaneously releasing oxygen for life support systems.

The most important aspect of any colony is its people. While scientists and technical experts are crucial, the colony will also need individuals with a knack for fixing things, creative problem-solving skills, and the ability to think on their feet when challenges arise. These qualities are where humans excel, but it will take time to develop the necessary technologies and prepare for such an endeavor.

## Conclusion

The daunting task of preparing for a Mars colony is a topic that has captured the imagination of many. For those interested in learning more about the challenges involved, "Packing for Mars" on Curiosity Stream offers a fascinating glimpse into the meticulous planning required before humans set foot on the Red Planet. Curiosity Stream provides access to thousands of nonfiction documentaries from some of the best filmmakers in the world, making it an invaluable resource for anyone interested in science, technology, and outer space.

By addressing the challenges of establishing a colony on Mars and exploring potential solutions, humanity may one day turn this ambitious vision into reality—a future where humans live not just on Earth but as a multiplanetary species.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enthis episode is brought to you by curiosity stream home to thousands of nonfiction documentaries from some of the best filmmakers in the world follow the link below to start your free trial today since before the beginning of the space race people have looked up at the Stars and wondered what it would be like to live on other planets the more optimistic among us have long held that humans are destined to become a multiplanetary species and maybe they're right despite the big problems we face on our current planet which is vastly better suited to supporting life the prime candidate for a second home planet is Mars though Venus is also enticing a handful of eccentric visionaries like Elon Musk have even gone so far as to develop semi-concrete plans of how to build a functional permanent colony on Mars whether you think this kind of plan is likely to succeed or not the idea of a large Martian colony is fascinating in this episode we're going to consider what it would take to sustain a colony of 1 million people first let's compare specs on our two planets despite their obvious differences the red planet and the blue planet do have some things in common for example thanks to their similar rotation speed one day on Mars is only about 44 minutes longer than a day on earth the red planet's axial tilt is also very similar to earth at about 25 degrees to our planets 23 this means that Mars undergo similar seasonal and temperature variations both our rocky planets with metallic cores and similar mineral composition they have similar surface structures including mountains canyons and deserts but the differences between the two planets are much more significant than what they have in common perhaps the most significant is the Martian atmosphere unlike on earth the atmosphere on Mars is very thin only measuring about 1% of the Earth's atmospheric pressure and completely unbreathable for humans it's composed of about 96 percent co2 2 percent argon and 2 percent nitrogen with trace amounts of oxygen and water vapor this stark contrast leads to another Mars is drastically colder than Earth averaging negative 46 degrees Celsius with brutal lows of minus 143 in the winter and highs of 35 degrees Celsius in the summer on the equator Mars is also very dry and dusty and is buffeted by frequent sandstorms the planet also lacks any reasonably sized magnetosphere what little remains of its magnetic shield measured between 16 and 40 times weaker than Earth's which leaves more susceptible to harmful cosmic rays gravity clocks in at about 37 percent that of Earth which would be a small challenge to overcome but nothing compared to the temperature and lack of atmosphere one final problem is the lack of liquid water Mars does have water at the poles but it's mostly frozen and nowhere near the amount we have on earth any successful Martian colony would have to contend with these big problems and fight to establish any kind of hospitable environment on what should be considered a world hostile to life so let's tackle those challenges the first big one would be setting up a habitat that could support large numbers of humans protect them from the cold and frequent dust storms provide breathable air safe drinking water a way to produce food and a shield against lethal cosmic rays no big deal right step one would be a large enclosure to act as a central hub for our 1 million Martian colonists this has often been envisioned as a city beneath a big glass dome providing light but also protection from the elements Elon Musk has also speculated that this could be a good formula for his Mars colony saying that a pressurized glass dome with parks and plant life could be a very pleasant way to live during the long process of terraforming Mars into a more hospitable home but in order to have a functional colony beneath this utopian dome you'd need a way to power it the current frontrunner for powering a Mars base our solar and nuclear depending on who you ask solar obviously comes without the risk of accidental radiation but it will require a lot of land area for solar farms that shouldn't matter though since Mars is currently nothing but open land and the colony will be fairly small the settlement would also need large energy storage units for the frequent periods of darkness caused by violent dust storms which could also damage the solar panels assuming we get the power working the next critical step would be food and water production in theory food would be easy enough as long as the colony has access to plenty of water we have very advanced and highly productive hydroponic farms here on earth and there's no reason we couldn't do the same thing on Mars you don't even need natural light or soil so the farms could very easily be built underground for saving space and added protection it's likely that a Martian colonists would have to be ok with synthetic meat or an entirely plant-based diet because shuttling livestock to Mars might prove to be a bit too challenging not to mention the added complexity of keeping large numbers of animals healthy and fed establishing a secure and consistent source of oxygen and water is probably the biggest hurdle in building a colony on a largely airless waterless world one proposed solution is to extract carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and split the molecules into carb and oxygen it would certainly be easier to make an automated atmospheric co2 extraction system than a fully autonomous mining rig with excavators and complex equipment to pull co2 from the soil but that is another option as for water NASA is currently investigating the possibility of extracting water from underground reservoirs and using highly efficient recycling methods to reduce the overall demand for freshwater whether there's enough subsurface water on Mars remains to be seen but another option would be sourcing ice from the poles which could be processed into clean useable water to make a long story short we'd have to look at Mars as the British did the Americas which comes with its own set of ethical concerns but that's another topic entirely we could supply the initial and essential components to jumpstart a small outposts but in order to scale up to include 1 million people the Martian colony would have to become completely self-sufficient it would have to make use of the materials within the Martian environment because relying on shipments from earth would be both incredibly expensive and very dangerous if the colony had no way to produce its own oxygen for example and something went wrong with the shipment from Earth there would be a very real risk of all the colonists dying the proposed solution here is to develop technologies that work with the Martian environment instead of fighting against it we've already seen promising proposals for methods of making building materials from Martian soil such as a process called molten regolith electrolysis which is a fancy term for using electricity to break down silicates into their base components in a single step this has the dual benefit of creating a metallic alloy that can be used for construction while simultaneously releasing oxygen that can be harnessed for life support systems all of these things are critical to establish a successful colony on Mars but the most important aspect is the colonists themselves will need scientists and technical experts but we'll also need normal people with a knack for fixing things people who can think on their feet when something goes wrong find a new way to use an existing tool think creatively in order to make Martian life more meaningful those are areas where humans excel we've got a long way to go before the technology is ready but our species has been prepared for a long time if you'd like to learn more about the daunting challenge of preparing for a Mars colony I highly recommend you check out packing for Mars on curiosity stream it's a fascinating documentary that highlights just how carefully we have to plan our Mars mission before humans ever set foot on the Red Planet if you watch my videos you'll know that I'm a big fan of curiosity stream it's an online streaming service with thousands of nonfiction titles from some of the best filmmakers in the game you can find tons of great episodes like packing for Mars and they've got a bunch of material on technology and outer space which are some of my favorites they're giant catalogue includes content on science nature astronomy technology and lifestyle among others unlimited access starts at just $2.99 a month and as a special offer just for you guys you can get a free trial by following the link below curiosity stream is available on just about every platform you can imagine so wherever you are you'll always have access to great interesting content as an added bonus your curiosity stream subscription now comes with a free Nebula subscription nebula is a new streaming platform built by and for creators like Wendover productions real engineering Kurtz Kazakh and of course second thought and many others it's a place for us to try new things and make original content that just wouldn't be possible on YouTube give curiosity stream a shot and get free access to nebula when you visit curiosity stream comm slash second thought if you enjoyed this episode consider dropping a like if not a thumbs down while you're here check out some of my other work I have videos on all sorts of topics and I bet you'll find something you'll enjoy remember to subscribe if you'd like to see more episodes like this one and click the bell to be notified each time I upload a new video thanks for watching and I'll see you in the next onethis episode is brought to you by curiosity stream home to thousands of nonfiction documentaries from some of the best filmmakers in the world follow the link below to start your free trial today since before the beginning of the space race people have looked up at the Stars and wondered what it would be like to live on other planets the more optimistic among us have long held that humans are destined to become a multiplanetary species and maybe they're right despite the big problems we face on our current planet which is vastly better suited to supporting life the prime candidate for a second home planet is Mars though Venus is also enticing a handful of eccentric visionaries like Elon Musk have even gone so far as to develop semi-concrete plans of how to build a functional permanent colony on Mars whether you think this kind of plan is likely to succeed or not the idea of a large Martian colony is fascinating in this episode we're going to consider what it would take to sustain a colony of 1 million people first let's compare specs on our two planets despite their obvious differences the red planet and the blue planet do have some things in common for example thanks to their similar rotation speed one day on Mars is only about 44 minutes longer than a day on earth the red planet's axial tilt is also very similar to earth at about 25 degrees to our planets 23 this means that Mars undergo similar seasonal and temperature variations both our rocky planets with metallic cores and similar mineral composition they have similar surface structures including mountains canyons and deserts but the differences between the two planets are much more significant than what they have in common perhaps the most significant is the Martian atmosphere unlike on earth the atmosphere on Mars is very thin only measuring about 1% of the Earth's atmospheric pressure and completely unbreathable for humans it's composed of about 96 percent co2 2 percent argon and 2 percent nitrogen with trace amounts of oxygen and water vapor this stark contrast leads to another Mars is drastically colder than Earth averaging negative 46 degrees Celsius with brutal lows of minus 143 in the winter and highs of 35 degrees Celsius in the summer on the equator Mars is also very dry and dusty and is buffeted by frequent sandstorms the planet also lacks any reasonably sized magnetosphere what little remains of its magnetic shield measured between 16 and 40 times weaker than Earth's which leaves more susceptible to harmful cosmic rays gravity clocks in at about 37 percent that of Earth which would be a small challenge to overcome but nothing compared to the temperature and lack of atmosphere one final problem is the lack of liquid water Mars does have water at the poles but it's mostly frozen and nowhere near the amount we have on earth any successful Martian colony would have to contend with these big problems and fight to establish any kind of hospitable environment on what should be considered a world hostile to life so let's tackle those challenges the first big one would be setting up a habitat that could support large numbers of humans protect them from the cold and frequent dust storms provide breathable air safe drinking water a way to produce food and a shield against lethal cosmic rays no big deal right step one would be a large enclosure to act as a central hub for our 1 million Martian colonists this has often been envisioned as a city beneath a big glass dome providing light but also protection from the elements Elon Musk has also speculated that this could be a good formula for his Mars colony saying that a pressurized glass dome with parks and plant life could be a very pleasant way to live during the long process of terraforming Mars into a more hospitable home but in order to have a functional colony beneath this utopian dome you'd need a way to power it the current frontrunner for powering a Mars base our solar and nuclear depending on who you ask solar obviously comes without the risk of accidental radiation but it will require a lot of land area for solar farms that shouldn't matter though since Mars is currently nothing but open land and the colony will be fairly small the settlement would also need large energy storage units for the frequent periods of darkness caused by violent dust storms which could also damage the solar panels assuming we get the power working the next critical step would be food and water production in theory food would be easy enough as long as the colony has access to plenty of water we have very advanced and highly productive hydroponic farms here on earth and there's no reason we couldn't do the same thing on Mars you don't even need natural light or soil so the farms could very easily be built underground for saving space and added protection it's likely that a Martian colonists would have to be ok with synthetic meat or an entirely plant-based diet because shuttling livestock to Mars might prove to be a bit too challenging not to mention the added complexity of keeping large numbers of animals healthy and fed establishing a secure and consistent source of oxygen and water is probably the biggest hurdle in building a colony on a largely airless waterless world one proposed solution is to extract carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and split the molecules into carb and oxygen it would certainly be easier to make an automated atmospheric co2 extraction system than a fully autonomous mining rig with excavators and complex equipment to pull co2 from the soil but that is another option as for water NASA is currently investigating the possibility of extracting water from underground reservoirs and using highly efficient recycling methods to reduce the overall demand for freshwater whether there's enough subsurface water on Mars remains to be seen but another option would be sourcing ice from the poles which could be processed into clean useable water to make a long story short we'd have to look at Mars as the British did the Americas which comes with its own set of ethical concerns but that's another topic entirely we could supply the initial and essential components to jumpstart a small outposts but in order to scale up to include 1 million people the Martian colony would have to become completely self-sufficient it would have to make use of the materials within the Martian environment because relying on shipments from earth would be both incredibly expensive and very dangerous if the colony had no way to produce its own oxygen for example and something went wrong with the shipment from Earth there would be a very real risk of all the colonists dying the proposed solution here is to develop technologies that work with the Martian environment instead of fighting against it we've already seen promising proposals for methods of making building materials from Martian soil such as a process called molten regolith electrolysis which is a fancy term for using electricity to break down silicates into their base components in a single step this has the dual benefit of creating a metallic alloy that can be used for construction while simultaneously releasing oxygen that can be harnessed for life support systems all of these things are critical to establish a successful colony on Mars but the most important aspect is the colonists themselves will need scientists and technical experts but we'll also need normal people with a knack for fixing things people who can think on their feet when something goes wrong find a new way to use an existing tool think creatively in order to make Martian life more meaningful those are areas where humans excel we've got a long way to go before the technology is ready but our species has been prepared for a long time if you'd like to learn more about the daunting challenge of preparing for a Mars colony I highly recommend you check out packing for Mars on curiosity stream it's a fascinating documentary that highlights just how carefully we have to plan our Mars mission before humans ever set foot on the Red Planet if you watch my videos you'll know that I'm a big fan of curiosity stream it's an online streaming service with thousands of nonfiction titles from some of the best filmmakers in the game you can find tons of great episodes like packing for Mars and they've got a bunch of material on technology and outer space which are some of my favorites they're giant catalogue includes content on science nature astronomy technology and lifestyle among others unlimited access starts at just $2.99 a month and as a special offer just for you guys you can get a free trial by following the link below curiosity stream is available on just about every platform you can imagine so wherever you are you'll always have access to great interesting content as an added bonus your curiosity stream subscription now comes with a free Nebula subscription nebula is a new streaming platform built by and for creators like Wendover productions real engineering Kurtz Kazakh and of course second thought and many others it's a place for us to try new things and make original content that just wouldn't be possible on YouTube give curiosity stream a shot and get free access to nebula when you visit curiosity stream comm slash second thought if you enjoyed this episode consider dropping a like if not a thumbs down while you're here check out some of my other work I have videos on all sorts of topics and I bet you'll find something you'll enjoy remember to subscribe if you'd like to see more episodes like this one and click the bell to be notified each time I upload a new video thanks for watching and I'll see you in the next one\n"