The distant and barren Mars, in 20 years, may become the first "immigrant planet" of mankind.
At present, the large launch vehicle system "Starship" of the United States Space Exploration Technology Corporation (SpaceX) has entered the fourth launch countdown, as the world's largest and most powerful launch vehicle so far, "Starship" will be the core carrier of Musk's "immigration to Mars" mission.
Mars and Earth are 225 million kilometers apart, and according to current technology, the call reception delay between the two places is 20 minutes, and it takes 520 days to make a round trip. The long distance cannot stop the pace of human exploration, and the Chinese and American Mars probes have successfully landed on the surface of Mars 10 times. This also means that Mars, which is regarded as the "graveyard of probes", is no longer deterred. According to expert analysis, after the successful operation of the "Starship", the earthlings immigrated to Mars, the freight cost of hundreds of tons of materials was reduced to 1/1000, and it became easier and easier to send express delivery.
The U.S. Perseverance rover was launched aboard the Cosmos 5 rocket. Source: Xinhua News Agency
The first Martian settlers began to save money
Recently, Musk delivered a speech at SpaceX Star City in Texas, USA, and then talked about the Mars immigration plan, saying that this is the first opportunity in the 4.5 billion years of the earth's history, and the first time that it is possible to station life or consciousness outside the earth.
In fact, ten years ago, the Dutch non-profit organization "Mars One" also released the "Mars Immigration" plan that caused a global sensation, and among nearly 100,000 applicants, the number of Chinese immigrants ranked second, second only to the United States. The plan was originally to select four people to be sent to Mars in 2023, but the plan was suspended due to the bankruptcy of the organization company.
However, the Martian migration plan has not been put on hold. Musk appeared to be the most urgent, saying, "A self-sufficient city needs about 1 million people, millions of tons of goods, and we can do that in 20 years." To that end, about every two years, thousands of spacecraft will depart from Earth for Mars, and to support more launch missions, SpaceX plans to build new launch towers.
At the same time, Musk also expects to control the cost of Martian immigration to 2 million per person. Starship, which is about to be launched again, is the largest and most powerful launch vehicle in human history, and can reduce transportation costs to a fraction of a fraction - $10 per kilogram for cargo and $10,000 per person for passengers. At present, the price of international aerospace is about: 10,000 US dollars/kg for cargo and 80 million US dollars/person for passenger transportation.
If the price is really as Musk expected, many experts say they are "willing to spend money to try". Netizens also imagined, "ready to save money to buy a ferry ticket", "I hope to have the opportunity to write in the epitaph, 'Born on Earth, Died on Mars'......
In the solar system, there are Earth-like planets such as Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars, why do humans only love "immigrating to Mars"?
Professor Xiao Long, a Mars exploration expert at China University of Geosciences (Wuhan), introduced that Mars is the most similar and second-closest planet to the Earth in the solar system, with a thin carbon dioxide atmosphere, and the intensity of solar radiation is close to half of that of the Earth. Mars also has a layer of soil on its surface, which was formed by the weathering of basalt-dominated rocks over billions of years. The biggest difference between Martian soil and Earth's soil is that Mars lacks the role of microorganisms, resulting in very poor soil.
Despite the cold and inhospitable nature of Mars today, a large number of discoveries have shown that Mars billions of years ago was likely to be very similar to the current Earth, a cradle of life with abundant precipitation, rivers, lakes and marshes, and even vast oceans.
Images of the Antarctic ice sheet taken by the mainland's Tianwen-1 spacecraft. Source: The official WeChat account of China's lunar exploration program
At present, several probes on Earth have found evidence of a small amount of water vapor circulation on the surface of Mars, and liquid water is the element that supports the existence of life. The probe also detected methane in the Martian atmosphere and found carbon-containing organic molecules in soil rocks, further supporting the possibility of life on Mars. In addition, the discovery of ancient rivers, ancient lakes, delta relics and water-bearing minerals also confirm the existence of large amounts of liquid water on Mars. The discovery of water will also further support the feasibility of "immigrating to Mars".
How far away is "Migration to Mars".
As the most similar and second-closest planet to Earth in the solar system, the history of human exploration of Mars has spanned almost the entire history of human spaceflight.
Scientifically, we want to look for evidence of extraterrestrial life and its origins. At the same time, many space powers want to answer the question of whether there are resources on Mars that can be used by mankind in the future, that is, whether it is expected to become a "second home" for mankind.
After more than 50 human missions to Mars, practice has proved that landing on Mars is much more difficult than landing on the moon.
The moon landing is relatively simple because the moon has no atmosphere, and the Martian atmosphere brings many uncertainties to the landing of the probe, such as sandstorms. In such an environment, it is difficult to accurately control the strength and time of the detector stepping on the accelerator, which may lead to the detector "overturning".
"In addition, the particularity of Mars is that every 26 months there is a three-week 'golden launch period' of Mars probes, when the Earth and Mars meet in a straight line, and the launcher will greatly save fuel and time from Earth. Xiao Long introduced to the Chao News reporter.
Therefore, Musk is "urgently" setting off to Mars, "if we wait too long, we may miss the window to establish a place to live on Mars". In Xiao Long's view, Musk is out of long-term considerations, because "immigrating to Mars" is a huge and long-term system project. In the long run, the possibility of a catastrophe such as an asteroid impact on Earth cannot be ruled out, so humanity needs to explore and colonize Mars.
Image of the impact crater of the Arabian Highlands on Mars taken by Tianwen-1 on the mainland. Image source: The official WeChat account of China's lunar exploration program
Although the continent has successfully landed on Mars several times so far, there are still many problems to be overcome in the future of Mars exploration.
In addition to overcoming natural conditions, the detector also requires precise programming. Xiao Long introduced that the process of the lander from the Martian atmosphere to the surface of Mars completely relies on a pre-set program to complete, and only seven or eight minutes, "If the actual situation is inconsistent with the preset program parameters, it is easy to lead to failure, because it is too late to make temporary adjustments." ”
"Moreover, it takes seven or eight months to fly from Earth to Mars, and the relevant technology needs to be further improved to save time and costs. Xiao Long believes that there are still many problems to be solved urgently for human beings to really "immigrate to Mars", such as creating a normal breathing environment in thin air, building a recyclable ecosystem on the surface of Mars, etc., "drinking water sources, medical health, clothing, food, housing and transportation...... There are many specific technical problems, which also need to be overcome one by one. ”
Xiao Long told Chao News reporters, "The exploration process will be restricted by factors such as capital, technology, and natural disasters, in fact, it is difficult to say when this goal will be reached, but it is certain to move forward step by step." "At present, Mars exploration technology is becoming more and more perfect, and it is only a matter of time before Mars settles, and everyone should be tolerant.
Maybe one day, we will really build a new home and create a self-sufficient civilization on Mars, as portrayed in science fiction films. And, in addition to immigration, we can also use Mars as a "cosmic springboard" to take humanity deeper into space.
China is preparing to go to Mars to "dig the earth"
At present, only China and the United States have successful experience in realizing the landing of probes on the surface of Mars. Subsequently, the continental Mars exploration plan was in full swing, and going to Mars to "dig the soil" was an important arrangement.
Recently, the relevant research team of the Aerospace Science and Technology Group said that China plans to complete the return of Mars samples around 2030. This will be another flight to Mars after the successful launch of the Tianwen-1 Mars exploration mission, the first mission of the continental planetary exploration project.
The one who undertakes this important task is the "Tianwen-3" Mars probe under development on the mainland. Xiao Long introduced that the core mission of "Tianwen-3" is to collect samples on the surface of Mars and bring them back to Earth to find traces of life on Mars.
However, the most difficult is the return of Martian samples. According to relevant experts, there are two major difficulties in sample return: one is to obtain samples on the surface of Mars and then take off and ascend, and the other is to complete the rendezvous between the two targets and the transfer of samples in orbit.
Industry insiders said that this will be more difficult than the "Tianwen-1" exploration mission, but everyone has seen the confidence to further explore Mars from its many historical records of continental planetary exploration.
On May 15, 2021, the "Zhurong" rover in Tianwen-1 left a Chinese mark on Mars for the first time. "The orbiter has achieved global coverage on Mars, and the continent has obtained a large amount of scientific exploration data, hoping to gain understanding and cognition of Mars through data interpretation. Zhang Rongqiao, chief designer of China's first Mars exploration mission, told the media.
Martian rocks photographed by the Zhurong rover. Source: The official WeChat account of China's lunar exploration program
According to its orbiter data, China's first global image of Mars exploration will be released in 2023, providing a better quality basic base map for scientific research. The Zhurong rover has operated for 368 Earth days in its work cycle, with a total distance of 1.921 kilometers, found evidence of water vapor cycle and wind-blown sand activity, and sent back a large number of precious Martian scientific research data to the mainland.
In addition to landing on Mars, ground scientific research is also being carried out simultaneously, although the Martian soil has not yet been collected, continental scientists have also begun to do related experiments to simulate the Martian environment, such as the laboratory simulation of the Martian environment to try to grow potatoes without soil, and the future of Mars soilless cultivation may be a development trend.
"Exploring Mars needs to be realized step by step, which is a long-term process, and the accumulated lunar exploration technology can provide experience reference and technology accumulation for the exploration of Mars. Xiao Long introduced that in the near future, the mainland will carry out Mars sample return, and will also carry out detailed surveys of various areas of Mars to find out its water environment and the possibility of preserving traces of life. Equally important, there is a manned landing on Mars, which means that there is a step closer to "immigrating to Mars".
(Chao News)