Is there a possibility that humans will be able to colonise Mars?
Through the decades, science fiction novels and movies painted a picture of the chances of life on Mars happening. Even Elon Musk wants to colonise Mars. His company SpaceX is working on a vehicle to transport people there. The ship, codenamed BFR (Big F%#@!ing Rocket), will hopefully fly for the first time during the first half of 2019.
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Is Elon Musk a tad optimistic in believing we can colonise the planet? After all, we all know there is no water, plants or any other signs of life. Well, it seems the Red Planet is not as dead as some might think.
Researchers have found an existing body of water on Mars. That’s right, a 20km wide body of water was found near the planet’s South Pole, under a body of ice.
This ground-breaking discovery is thanks to MARSIS, a radar instrument on board the European Space Agency’s Mars Express orbiter. While NASA’s Curiousity showed there was once water on the planet before, this new discovery opens several new doors of possibility.
However, Professor Roberto Orosei from the Italian National Institute for Astrophysics, who led the study, there is a chance the lake might not be all that big. He explains MARSIS couldn’t determine how thick the layer of water is. But, the research team estimates the lake is a minimum of one metre.
With the discovery of water on the Red Planet, does this mean we can prepare to colonise the planet? After all, if there is water, surely, we can live there. Right?
Not now. Dr Manesh Patel from Open University explains that the surface of Mars is unhospitable for life. While the subsurface will be able to offer mankind a certain degree of protection from the harsh elements of Mars, further investigations must be done before we jet off.
As the scientific world braces itself to conduct further tests and search for more water, is there a chance that we will see people moving to Mars in the not too distant future?
