4 ms·
Does it protect against other radiation than UV? Does it also seal a gaseous atmosphere at a usable pressure? In the novel/TV series "The Expanse", Martians li
by bayesian_horse 7y ago
Does it protect against other radiation than UV? Does it also seal a gaseous atmosphere at a usable pressure?
In the novel/TV series "The Expanse", Martians live underground in tunnels, because above ground it takes more material and energy to build air-tight buildings which also protect from radiation. And they still have adverse effects from the lower gravity.
One of the most fascinating aspects of that series is that there are three Human "subpopulations", two of which would have trouble to exist on Earth, physiologically.
- azernik 7y agoThe article is looking strictly at plant survival ("could be made habitable to photosynthetic life"). For that, the "usable pressure" is much lower.
- bayesian_horse 7y agoYes, that would be one explanation. Still, the thin atmosphere of mars would prevent any liquid water or plant life. So they must be talking about at least some more pressure.
- azernik 7y agoYup - they specifically talk about partial pressures of a few gasses as needing to be brought up. But holding in just the partial pressure of those two is a lot easier than holding in a full atmosphere of pressure.
- bayesian_horse 7y agoI don't think it works that way. Plants generally also need oxygen, if only at night or relatively little. So we're basically up to Oxygen and CO2, and Nitrogen might not be entirely avoidable either depending on how the plants are supposed to get their Nitrogen. Water vapor will also be necessary or unavoidable... The pressure needs to be high enough to prevent boiling and less dramatic effects on water or similar matter. There's a reason nothing grows above a certain altitude. That's why I asked about a usable atmosphere... And anyone living on Mars would probably have acclimated to a certain atmospheric pressure. Maybe it is beneficial for them to be "altitude adapted" or maybe it's not (oxygen capacity vs risk of embolisms).
- alex_duf 7y agoAlso the marines train at 1G just in case they have to fight on Earth which makes an interesting detail
- bayesian_horse 7y agoYes, and Bobby Draper (a Martian marine) still can't deal with it when she finally does go to earth. In the novel she admits to herself that the Idea of Martian marines fighting on Earth is ridiculous.
- 0xDEFC0DE 7y agoI always figured if they actually had to do that, there'd be combat drugs handed out like candy and it wouldn't be that big of an issue.
- kbenson 7y agoI think that might only help if fighting was on the scale of hours to single digit days (and at the extreme end of that, there might be long lasting repercussions). That's of course assuming all the possible repercussions of being born and growing to adulthood in lower gravity that we don't yet currently know of have been accounted for and counteracted. I'm doubtful that training in higher gravity once an adult can negate the major negative effects of growing under lower gravity (which might include weaker bones), and so also doubt that a drug causing an even shorter term change can negate the negatives also.
- solotronics 7y agoI don't think Mars and Earth would go to war because of the mutually assured destruction (kinetic weapons such as asteroids). More likely they would fight proxy wars for resources / control of moons etc. This is similar to how the US/USSR on Earth struggled for supremacy.
- bayesian_horse 7y ago
- stcredzero 7y agoDoes it protect against other radiation than UV? Does it also seal a gaseous atmosphere at a usable pressure? This would be useful in the construction of an arcology. New York City is little more than 300 square miles in area. A single huge building could easily encompass living space for an even larger population than NYC's, while also offering domed parks. The aerogel would take care of the thermal and UV issues. There would have to be a strong transparent membrane, perhaps sustained by pressure, to withstand winds and protect the aerogel. Also, such a unitary building, with a dome structure around it, would be easier to protect against radiation with magnetic fields, as conductors in the dome itself could be used. Fusion power seems like a must have for this kind of project. Also, this would entail additional expense, which tunnel habitation wouldn't incur. In the novel/TV series "The Expanse", Martians live underground in tunnels, because above ground it takes more material and energy to build air-tight buildings which also protect from radiation. So perhaps such Martian arcologies would be playgrounds for the rich? Perhaps they would be the equivalent of today's Dubai? And they still have adverse effects from the lower gravity. One of the most fascinating aspects of that series is that there are three Human "subpopulations", two of which would have trouble to exist on Earth, physiologically. We still don't know if the effects are necessarily adverse at Martian levels. There might be a benefit, so long as the radiation can be mitigated. In any case, the gravity could be mitigated with a "slanted racetrack" style centrifuge. An entire arcology could be constructed this way. It could well be that the residents of such arcologies would be stronger and healthier. That would be one hell of a form of class distinction. It would be similar to the combat differences between medieval Knights and peasant conscripts. Perhaps arcologies would become the castles of a warring Mars gone feudal?