Actually the Martian soil is loaded with water, one of the most relevant and surprising findings of Curiosity. That was another thing that 'The Martian' got wro

Actually the Martian soil is loaded with water, one of the most relevant and surprising findings of Curiosity. That was another thing that 'The Martian' got wrong - that time by accident! Each cubic foot of Martian soil contains about a liter of water! At the same time that discovery, as fundamental as it is, really illustrates that we just don't know much of anything about Mars. The problem of probes and rovers is demonstrated by the RSL or recurring slope linea - that abysmal choice of nomenclature is not mine! We can't determine whether these mysterious streaks are surface level brine water as at one time announced by NASA, or indeed just sand formations as latest research indicates. What is the source of the methane that we've found in the atmosphere? I'm not suggesting there is life, but I would suggest that it's unreasonable to suggest that we have sufficient evidence to intelligently say that there is not. It's still a question. That's an aside. With my point I was getting at two things. The first is literal size. Mars is smaller than Earth of course but it's actually near identical in size to the land area on Earth. It's really big. And there's no major obstacles in the way of exploitation. For instance like the ocean and weather irregularity on Antarctica. And there's also likely an extensive array of mineral deposits on Mars. The surface itself is red from iron oxide, aka rust. Basically if you can imagine it, you can build it. This really opens the door for entrepreneurship like nothing before. Would it be possible to have a domed forest on Mars, or eventually even domed outposts that begin to resemble cities? I don't see why not. There are also even bigger picture terraforming ideas. At one point in its history Mars likely very much resembled Earth. The loss of its magnetic field exposing it to radiation and stripping away it's atmosphere likely played a major role in its decline. It's possible that we could create an artificial magnetic field on Mars in a variety of ways. Again - potential.