4 ms·

It reduces the risk of total species annihilation.

• lliiffee 17y ago
  I wonder how much it does. Seems to me the greatest risk is global thermonuclear war. If we are determined enough to nuke ourselves our of existence here, couldn't we pretty easily send a bunch of bombs mars' way, too?
  • wooster 17y ago
    There are more risks than nuclear war. For example, asteroid impacts, pandemics, ecological disasters, etc. Even in the case of nuclear war, it's much easier to detect and destroy an incoming nuke from another planet than it is to hit one that makes its transit in 5 minutes. Especially if information about the nuke is transmitted at the same time as the nuke. Also, once we make that first "leap across the black" to colonizing another planet, theoretically the next, further leap, will be easier/less daunting.