challenges of living on mars

It seems like everyone has Mars on the mind these days. NASA wants to send humans to the red planet by 2030, and SpaceX wants to get there even sooner, with plans to have people there by 2026.

Mars is a favorite theme in Hollywood, with movies like The Martian and Life exploring what we might find once we finally reach our celestial neighbor, but most of them aren’t addressing the biggest questions — once we get there, how will we survive long-term?

As Mars is farther away from the Sun than Earth is, it is extremely cold on the red planet.  On average, the temperature on Mars is about minus 60 degrees Celsius.  Such extreme cold temperature on the Martian surface makes it extremely difficult for humans to live.

There are no plants, trees, or animals for us to eat on Mars.  We have to grow food on the Martian soil in order to survive.  However, growing food crops on Mars is quite challenging.  Food crops need habitats with breathable air, radiation protection, nutrients in the soil, water, and steady temperatures and pressure to survive.  The soil on Earth is full of microbes and other organic matter that help plants grow, but the Martian soil is basically crushed rock.  Lack of nutrients and water-holding capacity of the soil, harmful elements in the soil, lack of atmosphere, very low temperature & heat, high radiation levels, and reduced gravity - all make it very challenging to grow food crops on Mars. 

Without having water, humans cannot survive on Mars.  Almost all water on Mars today exists as ice, though it also exists in small quantities as vapor in the atmosphere.  The only place where water ice is visible at the surface is at the north polar ice cap.  Abundant water ice is also present beneath the permanent carbon dioxide ice cap at the Martian south pole and in the shallow subsurface at more temperate conditions. Some liquid water may occur transiently on the Martian surface today but it is limited to traces of dissolved moisture from the atmosphere and thin films.  No large standing bodies of liquid water exist on the planet's surface because of very low atmospheric pressure.   Unless we can create liquid water from ice, it will be impossible to survive on Mars.

Mars has an atmosphere that is much thinner than the atmosphere on Earth, but which still creates winds. When these winds pick up the fine, dry particles of dust on Mars, a dust storm can occur. Most dust storms cover an area for a few days and carry small particles of dust at speeds of 33 to 66 miles per hour. Sometimes, though rarely, dust storms on Mars can be fierce enough to cover the entire planet in a dusty haze for weeks.  These intense dusty sand storms can last for several months and make it difficult for people to live or work on Mars when the dust storms arise.  In addition to enveloping the planet, dust storms contribute to water loss on Mars.  Ultraviolet light from the sun can then break the water molecules apart - into hydrogen and oxygen.  The hydrogen from the water molecule then escapes into space, reducing the water content on the planet.

A magnetosphere is that area of space, around a planet, that is controlled by the planet's magnetic field. The magnetosphere around Earth shields it from solar and cosmic radiation by deflecting it away from Earth.  This prevents erosion of the atmosphere by the solar wind (the constant flow of charged particles streaming off the sun).  That is why Earth is a livable planet for earthly beings like us.

However, Mars has a much weaker magnetosphere today.  It probably had strong magnetosphere millions of years ago but since then has lost much of it due to the cooling down of the planet's core.  Over the course of the last 500+ million years, Mars's atmosphere has been slowly stripped away by the solar wind.  Without a sufficiently thick atmosphere, the surface of Mars is exposed to much higher levels of radiation than Earth.  The harsh solar radiation makes it difficult for humans to live on Mars.

Gravity on Mars is less than that of Earth making it difficult to walk around.  In addition, the difference in gravity negatively affects human health by weakening bones and muscles.  On earth, blood within the body stays 70% below the heart.  However, on Mars, this is not the case as gravity is weak to pull the blood down.  As a result, blood pressure in the lower body and legs will be significantly reduced. This causes legs to become weak through loss of muscle and bone mass, leading to osteoporosis and cardiovascular problems.  

Access Mars is an online tool that lets you explore a 3D replica of the Martian surface, exactly as it was recorded by the Curiosity rover.  By combining and analyzing these photographs, scientists at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) have created a 3D model used to study Mars and plan future experiments.   

Google Mars is an online tool that allows you to explore Martian terrain, regions, mountains, canyons, dunes, plains, ridges and craters using Google Mars tool in 2D.  In the below screen, click the menus on top-left side to view various areas of Mars.

Below, you will find two types of activities:

1. Digital Activity

2. Physical Activity

You can use the knowledge acquired in this module to complete and submit either a digital activity, or a physical activity or both.  The choice is yours, but submitting at least one activity per module is important to receive participation certificate at the end of the bootcamp.

Complete ANY ONE of the below activities using a digital or AI tool of your choice:

• Develop a Mobile app, Chatbot, Quiz, Alexa Skill, eBook or video that provides information about various challenges of living on Mars.

• Create a Game in which an astronaut is caught up in a dust storm on Mars.   The astronaut has various options to take cover from the dust storm: go into underground hiding chamber, fly out of the Martian sky, run for cover behind a mountain, etc.  You win the game if you successfully escape the dust storm, while you lose the game if the astronaut is caught up in the dust storm and is thrown around to die.

• Develop a 3D Model of a Rover that allows the Rover to protect itself when a dust storm arises, and also use an alternative power source to continue working even when sunlight is blocked from the dust storm.

Customize or enhance the above activities further as per your interest and bandwidth.

If you need guidance in using AI-based digital tools, please click here.

Submitting your Digital Activity: Click the "Submit Activity" button at the bottom of this page to submit your digital activity.  In the submission form, paste the link to your digital creation directly from the online tool, or paste the link to your digital creation from your Google Drive folder.  Ensure that the link has "public access" or "Anyone with the link can view".

• Identify 8 to 10 challenges humans will face in living on Mars based on the information you have gathered about the red planet.

• Come up with innovative solutions to deal with the challenges identified.  Build a physical prototype or model of your solution(s).

Submitting your Physical Activity: Take a photo or video clip of your physical prototype or model and upload it to your Google Drive folder.  Click the "Submit Activity" button at the bottom of this page to submit your physical activity.  In the activity submission form, paste the link to the photo or video uploaded on your Google Drive folder. Ensure that the link has "public access" or "Anyone with the link can view".