Great News for a Mars Colony!

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Stunning pictures of clouds on Mars:

wattsupwiththat.com

NASA’s Curiosity Rover Captures Shining Clouds on Mars • Watts Up With That?

NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover captured these clouds just after sunset on March 19, 2021, the 3,063rd Martian day, or sol, of the rover’s mission. The image is made up of 21 individual images stitched together and color corrected so that the scene appears as it would to the human eye.Credits...
wattsupwiththat.com wattsupwiththat.com

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More pictures and GIFS at the link. Check them out.
 
Chemistry still matters.

phys.org

A catalyst that destroys perchlorate in water could clean Martian soil

Ateam led by UC Riverside engineers has developed a catalyst to remove a dangerous chemical from water on Earth that could also make Martian soil safer for agriculture and help produce oxygen for human Mars explorers.
phys.org phys.org

A team led by UC Riverside engineers has developed a catalyst to remove a dangerous chemical from water on Earth that could also make Martian soil safer for agriculture and help produce oxygen for human Mars explorers.

Perchlorate, a negative ion consisting of one chlorine atom bonded to four oxygen atoms, occurs naturally in some soils on Earth, and is especially abundant in Martian soil. As a powerful oxidizer, perchlorate is also manufactured and used in solid rocket fuel, fireworks, munitions, airbag initiators for vehicles, matches and signal flares. It is a byproduct in some disinfectants and herbicides.

Because of its ubiquity in both soil and industrial goods, perchlorate is a common water contaminant that causes certain thyroid disorders. Perchlorate bioaccumulates in plant tissues and a large amount of perchlorate found in Martian soil could make food grown there unsafe to eat, limiting the potential for human settlements on Mars. Perchlorate in Martian dust could also be hazardous to explorers. Current methods of removing perchlorate from water require either harsh conditions or a multistep enzymatic process to lower the oxidation state of the chlorine element into the harmless chloride ion.
 
Yikes!!! Gives new meaning to "there's a big world out there". ???

Crawl into bed (or, under it), lie in an ultra-tight fetal position and pull the covers over the head, firmly tucking them in on all sides.

or.....

Get out there and explore! ?
 
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Our universe is absolutely mind-boggling big. Our human minds can't comprehend the vastness. NASA estimates 2 trillion galaxies in the observable universe. The Milky Way galaxy alone has approx. 250 billion stars, many (most?) with planets, moons, comets, asteroids, etc.

ET is out there somewhere, but I'm not keen on looking for it. As the saying goes, "It's not wise to shout when you're in a jungle."
 
BlackHawk said:
Our universe is absolutely mind-boggling big. Our human minds can't comprehend the vastness. NASA estimates 2 trillion galaxies in the observable universe. The Milky Way galaxy alone has approx. 250 billion stars, many (most?) with planets, moons, comets, asteroids, etc.

ET is out there somewhere, but I'm not keen on looking for it. As the saying goes, "It's not wise to shout when you're in a jungle."
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Bad saying. Unless you're the hunter, make noise. You can be as quiet as a mouse, but we know what happens to mice. Smell yah later. Noise is your survival skill.

We now return to our regularly scheduled thread.
 
Sometimes it's fun to get away from pure science articles and explore Mars from the perspective of the MSM:

nypost.com

Humans could make babies on Mars after new sperm discovery, study says

“These discoveries are essential for mankind to progress into the space age,” said lead research author Professor Sayaka Wakayama, a scientist at Japan’s University of Yamanashi.
nypost.com nypost.com

Scientists have discovered that sperm can potentially survive on Mars for hundreds of years, meaning that humans could possibly reproduce on the Red Planet in the future.

“These discoveries are essential for mankind to progress into the space age,” lead research author Professor Sayaka Wakayama, a scientist at Japan’s University of Yamanashi, told the Daily Mail of the study.

However, no humans pleasured themselves in the name of science, per the research published Friday in the journal Science Advances. Instead, scientists studied the effects of radiation on a batch of mouse sperm that had been freeze-dried and stored aboard the International Space Station for six years.
 
lotr10 said:
Frankly, your average science fiction writer could do a better job outlining the risk/benefits of alien encounters then these so called experts:

nypost.com

Alien contact could ‘end life on Earth,’ scientists warn

Alien contact could ultimately “end life on Earth” and we shouldn’t seek to communicate with them as it risks “endangering mankind”, according to experts. Their fears …
nypost.com nypost.com
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If we go back far enough in the thread, that was exactly your worry. ?
 
eastisbest said:
If we go back far enough in the thread, that was exactly your worry. ?
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I was specifically referring to this passage in the article:

However, some scientists believe extraterrestrial contact could benefit humanity through the use of alien tech, which in turn could improve the planet’s sustainability and help cure diseases.

And I still believe it's foolish to advertise our presence to the surrounding galaxy as we can't know the potential threats involved.

As for this article my comment was aimed more at how unimaginatively the NASA folks and other experts describe the threats and benefits of contact. I've probably read a hundred science fiction stories that laid it out better.
 
lotr10 said:
I was specifically referring to this passage in the article:

However, some scientists believe extraterrestrial contact could benefit humanity through the use of alien tech, which in turn could improve the planet’s sustainability and help cure diseases.

And I still believe it's foolish to advertise our presence to the surrounding galaxy as we can't know the potential threats involved.

As for this article my comment was aimed more at how unimaginatively the NASA folks and other experts describe the threats and benefits of contact. I've probably read a hundred science fiction stories that laid it out better.
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Lol, no you weren't. YOU included the word "risk" and quoted a title "Alien contact could end life on Earth. He quoted someone saying pretty much what you said and how you said it. OK, we can agree that's not up to the level of even the average science fiction writer. But should it be? Who is it written for?

Since you are a "scientist," I'm sure you paid attention to who wrote that article? A guy from the checkout counter staple, "The Sun" (your source for political and scientific expertise? :ROFLMAO: ) quoting an article from "The Wash Post" and reprinted in the NY Post.

That's an article written for conspiracy theorists and soap opera watchers, not even your "average science fiction" writer's audience. How much depth were you expecting? You're really being a butter-cup here.
 
eastisbest said:
Lol, no you weren't. YOU included the word "risk" and quoted a title "Alien contact could end life on Earth. He quoted someone saying pretty much what you said and how you said it. OK, we can agree that's not up to the level of even the average science fiction writer. But should it be? Who is it written for?

Since you are a "scientist," I'm sure you paid attention to who wrote that article? A guy from the checkout counter staple, "The Sun" (your source for political and scientific expertise? :ROFLMAO: ) quoting an article from "The Wash Post" and reprinted in the NY Post.

That's an article written for conspiracy theorists and soap opera watchers, not even your "average science fiction" writer's audience. How much depth were you expecting? You're really being a butter-cup here.
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I'm not sure what you're so fired up about here? I read the article and in my opinion it was bland and unimaginative. And that's what I said when I posted a link to it. I figured people who visit this thread might be interested in the authors take.

I never said I disagreed with their conclusions, with the exception of the nonsense about humans learning new technologies that would help the Earths "sustainability".

Let's keep this a fun and educational thread. No need for GOTCHA is there?
 
Space exploration begins and ends with the engines. Nice summary of the options and progress being made out there:

scitechdaily.com

A New Era of Spaceflight? Exciting Advances in Rocket Propulsion

The US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (Darpa) has recently commissioned three private companies, Blue Origin, Lockheed Martin and General Atomics, to develop nuclear fission thermal rockets for use in lunar orbit. Such a development, if flown, could usher in a new era of spaceflight. T
scitechdaily.com
 
If we're going to apply the precautionary principal to an endeavor that will cost a lot of money to try to prevent something that is very unlikely to happen this is where I would put our resources:

www.universetoday.com

NASA has Approved a Space Telescope That Will Scan the Skies for Dangerous Near-Earth Asteroids

Can NASA save us from ourselves? No. But if they can protect us from deadly asteroids it might buy us time to figure things out here on Earth.
www.universetoday.com www.universetoday.com

NASA can’t do much about our own destructive impulses, but they are definitely in a position to help protect us from asteroids and comets that pose a threat. Those objects are called Near-Earth Objects, or NEOs. In 2005, the US Congress passed the NASA Authorization Act of 2005.

Among its requirements, it obligates NASA to raise its game when it comes to detecting NEOs. It states in part that NASA should “…detect, track, catalogue, and characterize the physical characteristics of near-Earth objects equal to or greater than 140 meters…” It also directs NASA to undertake a survey program that will “…achieve 90 percent completion of its near-Earth object catalogue (based on statistically predicted populations of near-Earth objects) within 15 years after the date of enactment of this Act.”
 
those aliens you fear, aren't going to throw rock at us from any direction that's pointed. For that matter catching everything from the traditional place is too big a risk. I'd favor scanning arrays and resources that can reflect trajectory given little warning. A defense grid of ready made mini rockets that will attach themselves to the object and redirect it the fraction of degree needed. They will double as space borne grub hubs to deliver pizza.
 
eastisbest said:
those aliens you fear, aren't going to throw rock at us from any direction that's pointed. For that matter catching everything from the traditional place is too big a risk. I'd favor scanning arrays and resources that can reflect trajectory given little warning. A defense grid of ready made mini rockets that will attach themselves to the object and redirect it the fraction of degree needed. They will double as space borne grub hubs to deliver pizza.
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We don't need aliens to throw rocks at us. I think it's pretty well established that we can get clobbered by a big rock naturally at any moment.

This is a step in the right direction and for sure they need to do more to create a detection and defense system. Your point about using rockets to redirect an asteroid is probably the only way we could safely handle a really big rock.

Again if we're going to commit massive resources to try to prevent a risk that has a low probability of occurring but if it did would be devastating is an asteroid defense system and hardening the electric grid to withstand a solar super storm.
 
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