Making Humans a Multiplanetary Species [video] • Hacker News Board

Re: Making Humans a Multiplanetary Species [video]

#911

Post by jandrese » Wed, Sep 28, 2016, 4:42 PM UTC

hmate9 wrote: post #457

cs702 wrote: post #447

To the US Federal Government: PLEASE. FUND. THIS. Loan the money to SpaceX, or partner with private investors, or increase NASA's budget and have NASA pay for it. Just make it happen. Even if this project fails, the benefits from having a lot of smart people trying to get to and establish a colony on Mars will pay dividends for a long time. Please make it happen!

If I recall correctly Elon said they have the money. That the project is costing them <5% of SpaceX.

The 5% of SpaceX was what they're willing to put into the project, but that only covers a few million of the tens of billions this project needs.

I wouldn't look to the Public sector for funding this. Governments have grown increasingly hostile to long term projects. Just ask NASA how much fun it is to have senators constantly threaten to cut your funding and the need to build things in an incredibly inefficient (expensive) way just to keep Congress happy. Plus you get all sorts of curveballs as administrations come and go and want to juggle the priorities. As a government project this would just be an endless money pit and if it ever got off of the ground it would be decades late and severely cut back in scope.

Re: Making Humans a Multiplanetary Species [video]

#912

Post by psyc » Wed, Sep 28, 2016, 4:45 PM UTC

Myrmornis wrote: post #753

grecy wrote: post #237

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Nobody's making you participate in this venture. If you don't like it, then you're free to go do whatever it is you do like. I can't agree more. I've seen HN degrade into that kind of discussion over the last 2 years and it really disappoints me. Part of me wishes HN had a really strong moderator that slapped down nay-sayers. If you're not contributing something valuable, comment deleted.

> Part of me wishes HN had a really strong moderator that slapped down nay-sayers. If you're not contributing something valuable, comment deleted. Pointing out flaws == not valuable?

Not nearly as valuable as negative people seem to think.

Re: Making Humans a Multiplanetary Species [video]

#913

Post by jandrese » Wed, Sep 28, 2016, 4:46 PM UTC

badminton1 wrote: post #731

Due to a lower atmospheric pressure (0.087 psi compared to Earth's 14.69 psi), water in mars begins to boil at 10 degrees Celsius, or 50 Fahrenheit. Gravity in Mars is 3.7 m/s², compared to 9.8 m/s². In a way, it's convenient since it would take less effort to reach Martian escape velocity. Mars does not have a magnetosphere, and therefore little protection from radiation. The technology to induce a planetary magneto…

All that says to me is underground living. Hydroponic gardens with artificial light (powered by the solar panels on the surface).

We would absolutely need to start designing and testing prototype colonies on Earth first. Probably in old mineshafts. The only similar experiment I can remember is the two attempts at Biodome, and they were both failures. There is a lot we don't know about making a self sustaining sealed habitat.

Re: Making Humans a Multiplanetary Species [video]

#914

Post by jandrese » Wed, Sep 28, 2016, 4:47 PM UTC

dba7dba wrote: post #614

45:25 Elon says he will leave detailed technical questions to QA after his presentation. Lol. His presentation was far more technical than any of the questions. I think I would prefer more presentation from him than any QA.

Maybe next time they won't invite burnt out stoners for the QA?

Re: Making Humans a Multiplanetary Species [video]

#915

Post by nixos » Wed, Sep 28, 2016, 4:58 PM UTC

kirrent wrote: post #719

nixos wrote: post #472

Did he talk about the future land ownership/governmentship of his colony? Will it be a personal dictatorship of Elon? Unlike Earth, once you're there, there's nowhere to go without his blessing. You can't just "move next door". And knowing how "locked down" his Tesla cars are, it'll be interesting to see how he'll deal with a rebellious colony.

He didn't, but the outer space treaty would make any claim to ownership of land invalid. In the past he's discussed direct democracy as a preferred form of governance for smaller colonies with all/most laws having sunset provisions requiring them to be debated/voted upon on renewal.

The Outer Space treaty doesn't prevent one from owning property in space.

But that's not the main issue. The main issue is that until another company opens up shop on Mars, you literally have nowhere to go, and the colony will be dependent on earth for quite some time.

What will happen if Elon doesn't like what they're doing and threatens to withhold supplies? rockets? Internet?

Re: Making Humans a Multiplanetary Species [video]

#916

Post by caconym_ » Wed, Sep 28, 2016, 5:07 PM UTC

andrepd wrote: post #822

jernfrost wrote: post #810

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Agree, I wrote a medium article about exactly this phenomenon partly inspired by you: https://medium.com/@Jernfrost/the-crab-people-and-space-expl... I've been annoyed by this attitude for quite some time now. You see it all the time. Same deal with Tesla an Model S. Because not everybody can afford it, and because not all power is renewable an electric car like Tesla Model S seems like some sort of terrible crime. W…

Oh it's progress, no doubt. There's no question about that. What me and other skeptics argue against is these kinds of overly futuristic announcements that have no ground in reality, yet have people praising them like they are some kind of achievement by themselves. Elon Musk grandly announces: I'm going to make humans an interplanetary species. This is such a grand and far reaching goal that were it to be achieved i…

SpaceX is showing that this sort of thing is within reach. Before the last few years, I would have looked at the current state of the art and politics of rocket technology and space exploration and dismissed this plan as a fanciful dream that could never happen. SpaceX has been killing it, though. They've been building new engines, landing rockets, and it's only a matter of time until they re-fly one; this is the sort of real progress we haven't seen in decades, and it's all in service of solving some of the thorniest bits of the "new" plan. I think it's time to reset our expectations and believe that something like this is possible. Musk himself said it's a long shot, and obviously it is, but I don't think it's rational to dismiss SpaceX after what they've already shown us they can do.

Re: Making Humans a Multiplanetary Species [video]

#917

Post by hx87 » Wed, Sep 28, 2016, 5:12 PM UTC

andrepd wrote: post #822

jernfrost wrote: post #810

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Agree, I wrote a medium article about exactly this phenomenon partly inspired by you: https://medium.com/@Jernfrost/the-crab-people-and-space-expl... I've been annoyed by this attitude for quite some time now. You see it all the time. Same deal with Tesla an Model S. Because not everybody can afford it, and because not all power is renewable an electric car like Tesla Model S seems like some sort of terrible crime. W…

Oh it's progress, no doubt. There's no question about that. What me and other skeptics argue against is these kinds of overly futuristic announcements that have no ground in reality, yet have people praising them like they are some kind of achievement by themselves. Elon Musk grandly announces: I'm going to make humans an interplanetary species. This is such a grand and far reaching goal that were it to be achieved i…

If "overpromise now and (under)deliver later" is the most effective and most efficient way of getting things done, isn't that worth all the disadvantages of such a strategy?

Re: Making Humans a Multiplanetary Species [video]

#918

Post by wyager » Wed, Sep 28, 2016, 5:15 PM UTC

yread wrote: post #842

peeters wrote: post #670

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> what are the advantages of a Mars colony? Survival of our species. Protection from an extinction event on Earth. Stepping stone to further expansion (interstellar).

Hey underwater would check two of those boxes EDIT: or moon surface

It wouldn't check any in the event of a large asteroid impact.

It's a lot harder to build a self-sustaining colony on the moon than on Mars. Mars is rich in carbon, oxygen, hydrogen, nitrogen. The moon is not.

Re: Making Humans a Multiplanetary Species [video]

#919

Post by wsinks » Wed, Sep 28, 2016, 5:18 PM UTC

JabavuAdams wrote: post #546

ythl wrote: post #382

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm not saying "don't try", I'm just saying "I think what you are attempting is foolish and that you are just going to kill a bunch of people", that's all. I can express an opinion about a potentially deadly venture, can't I?

A lot of large engineering projects have killed a bunch of people before succeeding. It's fine, as long as the people accept the risk, and aren't deceived.

RAILLLLLLROADDSSSSSS

Re: Making Humans a Multiplanetary Species [video]

#920

Post by hx87 » Wed, Sep 28, 2016, 5:19 PM UTC

benevol wrote: post #323

wmccullough wrote: post #184

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You're my hero! This attitude is why I quit regularly contributing to this site. Any time any single person does something positive, some armchair "expert" comes out the woodworks to tell you how it won't work or can't work.

I would never say "it won't work", but I do think we humans have a tendency to turn to technology to solve our most basic problems, while the real solutions lie within us (where most people never look). I believe we should first learn to clean up our act on planet Earth before we export anything of our existence and what we do. To me, the real revolution that needs to happen is a spiritual one - a statement that will…

True, technology doesn't necessarily make a person better, but it does make being a good person easier and more probable, and in a large population that probability makes all the difference.