3 ms·
Actually I think the big issue is expense and willingness to fund the expense. There are reasonably straightforward engineering solutions to most of the problem
by sfifs 10y ago
Actually I think the big issue is expense and willingness to fund the expense. There are reasonably straightforward engineering solutions to most of the problems that have been tested for a while (gravity from teethered capsules was tested in the 60s as I recall; Radiation shielding is straightforward with sufficient quantities of water, power through naval submarine type nuclear reactors etc). The problem is these would require massive amounts of mass to be lifted out of our gravity well through rocketry & willingness to fund with potentially insignificant returns doesn't really exist, though I believe some significant fraction of the American military budget should be sufficient.
Don't forget that as early as 50 years ago - an era almost primitive by standards of technology available today - given enough money, a number of men visited the moon.
- veli_joza 10y agoAs attractive as American military budget seems, why would it be in interest of USA to colonize another planet? A different nation would be formed with no more sense of attachment to USA than to rest of Earth. Rather, evolution teaches us that we have to form next stage of complex entity before these kinds of funding can be secured. Atoms -> molecules -> amino-acides -> self replicating compounds -> multicellular organisms -> conscious organisms -> packs/schools/flocks/tribes -> nations -> ...world government seems to be the next logical step. Before this step happens, planetary exploration is crippled by lack of interest in non-scientific majority of population.
- azernik 10y ago> Rather, evolution teaches us that we have to form next stage of complex entity before these kinds of funding can be secured. Ummmmm. What.
- veli_joza 10y agoYeah, re-reading this I find I expressed myself rather clumsily. What I meant is that currently it's not in the best interest of any individual nation to invest significant resources into space exploration & colonization because it puts it to disadvantage to other nations. So far most of resources seem to be directed at spying satellites and communication networks. The trend in evolution is that bonds/organizations/alliances form themselves at higher and higher abstraction levels. Extrapolating this trend, I expect some sort of stable planetary entity to occur at some point, that could pull off an engineering project of this scope.