7 dark scenarios when humans go to Mars

American billionaire Elon Musk dreams of bringing people to Mars, but still hesitates, because there are too many potential dangers to avoid.

"The probability of death is very high. There is no radical solution yet," admits US technology giant Elon Musk in a meeting to announce SpaceX's plan to colonize the Red planet.

As well as conquering Antarctica, the first person to set foot on Mars will face many unpredictable scenarios, and that may be the fake pay when trying to discover and conquer harsh environments. Chris McKay, a scientist at NASA Research Center, summarized the following 7 possibilities:

Explode missiles before leaving Earth

Musk plans to mount the spacecraft with the largest, largest-sized rocket ever. Rocket operation includes control of explosions, and no matter how many safety tests are performed, it is still possible to lose control. The amount of raw material will catch fire and explode.

NASA used to have two accidents that killed 14 people (Chanllenger and Columbia) with a death rate of 1.6. And SpaceX uses new technologies that have not been tested, so this number will certainly be much higher.

Radioactive contamination from the sun

The Earth's atmosphere protects people from solar radiation, so when traveling into space, astronauts will be "exposed" to toxic energy, 15 times more than a nuclear power plant. They can find ways to prevent these rays, but solar storms are not, because they happen very randomly. In Mars, they will also be affected by radiation more often.

Landing error

The "like movie" scenario is a spaceship that has trouble landing when it is possible. According to the plan of Musk's ship moving at a speed of 100,000km / h and using the supersonic missile system to slow down and land. Friction on Mars is different from the earth, so the landing is very difficult, typically the 1 tonne Curiosity ship has to "struggle" to settle. The Musk's ship weighs 450 tons, so the failure rate is quite high.

Low gravity makes "broken people"

Gravity of Mars is only about 3.8% on Earth, causing bones to be brittle due to calcium deficiency, muscle cramps, and insomnia.

Suffocated

On Red planet, of course, there is no food or drink and most importantly oxygen. Water can carry, oxygen can be synthesized but the real danger is an accident. The astronaut or temporary shelter may leak, causing air shortages. As long as a bit of dust gets into the sandstorm, people will die instantly.

Until now, Musk has only made plans for climate change, rather than focusing on the need to survive first.

Poisoning

Mars soil contains a lot of Perchlorate salt, a substance that makes rocket fuel and is also very toxic to human thyroid gland. Contact with soil does not harm but water, or plants grown from it, cannot be used at all, not to mention a certain species may exist.

Die for colleagues

This can be surprising to non-scientific people: One of NASA's top tasks when it comes to space is that every member must try to live together. In 1994, the Biosphere II project had to cancel midway because of the heavy conflict. In harsh environments like Mars, people need to unite and work well if not bad things will happen, including death.