Sometime in the coming decades, a handful of intrepid explorers will make human history by becoming the first to set foot on Mars. These trailblazing settlers will establish a permanent settlement on the harsh Martian surface, paving the way for more colonists to follow. However, the Red Planet will not make it easy for them. Mars is an inhospitable world that will test the mettle of even the most seasoned space veterans. This article offers a hypothetical look at the monumental challenges awaiting the first Martian settlers.
Leaving Home Behind
The settlers who embark on the journey to Mars will understand it might be a one-way trip. Current technology makes a return journey to Earth long, risky and expensive. Once they land, the settlers must commit to living there for more than a year until they have the opportunity to visit Earth again. While periodically they may get to interact with family and friends back on Earth through delayed communications, for all intents and purposes, they will be isolated on Mars. This could take a significant psychological toll over time. The settlers will need to have an adventurous spirit, curiosity for Martian exploration, and the emotional fortitude to leave their home planet behind for a year or more.
Surviving the Elements
Stepping outside their landing vehicles, the settlers will be greeted by an alien landscape more inhospitable than any place on Earth. The Martian atmosphere is unbreathably thin at less than 1% the density of Earth’s. Temperatures swing widely from lows of -120°C (-184°F) at night to highs of 20°C (68°F) during the day. The bitter cold, combined with frequent dust storms and intense ultraviolet radiation from the sun will make spending any time outdoors hazardous without protective suits and habitats. Simply surviving and carrying out basic tasks on Mars’ surface will require an incredible amount of resourcefulness and care from the settlers. They’ll need to avoid frostbite, heat stroke, sunburns and radiation poisoning just to work outside.
Building a Mini-Earth
Once they land, the settlers’ first priority will be deploying their habitats, power systems and life support equipment. They will only have the survival supplies and building materials they could carry on the months-long journey from Earth. Expandable modules from the spacecrafts will be connected to provide living quarters. Inflatable greenhouses will provide a shielded, pressurized environment to grow food. Water recycling systems, solar arrays, oxygen generators and backup batteries will all need to be assembled to provide the necessities of air, water, food and energy. Everything must be constructed to be airtight, protected from radiation, and pressurized for human habitation, as Mars lacks any natural protection. Any habitat tears or equipment breakdowns could quickly become catastrophic with no way to call for help from millions of miles away. The settlers will need to utilize every ounce of their engineering skills and resourcefulness to create a mini-Earth from scratch.
Coping With Isolation
The mental health of the Martian settlers may face threats equal to the harsh physical environment. Few human beings have experienced the degree of isolation and confinement they will endure. Communications with Earth will have gaps of up to 20 minutes each way, making casual conversation impossible. With a tiny population size, the settlers will have no privacy or personal time. Relying constantly on each other, any interpersonal conflicts could rapidly undermine the harmony of the small crew. Boredom and monotony living in the same barren, cramped quarters for months with no change of scenery could take a psychological toll. The settlers will need a strong support network, recreational activities, and ways to simulate Earth’s rhythms of day and night to stay healthy mentally. A stable, cohesive team will be key to surviving Mars’ isolating environment.
Adapting to Health Effects
Life on Mars will subject the settlers’ bodies to a spectrum of new stresses, which could compound over time. The Red Planet’s gravity is only 38% that of Earth, likely causing bone density and muscle mass to deteriorate. Medications and exercise will try to mitigate this, but the effects are unknown long-term. The increased radiation exposure could heighten risks of cancer and organ damage. Medical treatment options will be extremely limited, with no hospitals or specialists available. Additionally, the pervasive red dust could lead to respiratory issues, and contamination of food or water could cause disease. The settlers will need to be ingeniously adaptive both in maintaining their health and treating illnesses and injuries with whatever meager resources they have on hand. Their survival in an unforgiving environment will depend on their resilience.
Preparing for All Contingencies
From the moment they disembark from their spacecraft, the settlers should have contingency plans for any emergencies Mars throws at them. Dust storms could last months and cripple solar power supplies. Greenhouses could fail, threatening food production. A fire could rapidly consume precious oxygen in the habitat’s atmosphere. EVA suits and habitat walls could be breached by micrometeorites or fatigue. No matter how much they prepare in advance, problems will arise that the settlers never anticipated. With no chance of quick evacuation or resupply from Earth, they will need to devise creative solutions to survive. If they can overcome all the challenges Mars presents, then subsequent settlers will be able to follow in their footsteps, relying on the knowledge gained by these pioneer men and women who bravely carved out the first settlement on an alien world.
