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Colonization of Venus

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41–50 of 115 posts

Re: Colonization of Venus

#41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Untrue. You can actually mine the Venusian surface for metals. Carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen (the vast majority of the elements used by life) can be extracted from the atmosphere, as well as sulfur. So from an elemental standpoint, it actually could be self-sufficient. Not that you’d WANT to avoid trade with other planets, but it is possible. It is also possible to terraform Venus, although much more difficu…

> It is also possible to terraform Venus We can't even properly terraform inhospitable places within Earth. Hell, if anything we are very quickly un-terraforming Earth into a place inhospitable to human life.

We would have to work really hard to make Earth as inhospitable as other planets or moons in the solar system.

Re: Colonization of Venus

#42

It would be a colony constantly depending on Earth supplies and you would be constantly rebuilding it. Just like every other planet, nothing can permanently survive in upper atmosphere. It would be easier to have a massive ISS-style station in orbit, with a tethered cable elevator for research. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exposing_Microorganisms_in_the...

Untrue. You can actually mine the Venusian surface for metals. Carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen (the vast majority of the elements used by life) can be extracted from the atmosphere, as well as sulfur. So from an elemental standpoint, it actually could be self-sufficient. Not that you’d WANT to avoid trade with other planets, but it is possible. It is also possible to terraform Venus, although much more difficu…

> It is also possible to terraform Venus, although much more difficult than for Mars.

We are facing an existential crisis in the form of climate warming on Earth that we are unable to address properly. The thing is, terraforming Earth is the easiest thing to do: we already live on it, it's already liveable. Mars, Venus or any other body in the solar system is magnitudes harder to transform on almost every aspect.

So unless humanity demonstrates it can tackle the easiest terraforming endeavour that be, anything else is firmly in the science fiction realm.

Re: Colonization of Venus

#43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Untrue. You can actually mine the Venusian surface for metals. Carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen (the vast majority of the elements used by life) can be extracted from the atmosphere, as well as sulfur. So from an elemental standpoint, it actually could be self-sufficient. Not that you’d WANT to avoid trade with other planets, but it is possible. It is also possible to terraform Venus, although much more difficu…

> It is also possible to terraform Venus We can't even properly terraform inhospitable places within Earth. Hell, if anything we are very quickly un-terraforming Earth into a place inhospitable to human life.

If we could send all the terraformers from earth to mars we would so solve both problems at the same time

Re: Colonization of Venus

#44
post #42

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Untrue. You can actually mine the Venusian surface for metals. Carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen (the vast majority of the elements used by life) can be extracted from the atmosphere, as well as sulfur. So from an elemental standpoint, it actually could be self-sufficient. Not that you’d WANT to avoid trade with other planets, but it is possible. It is also possible to terraform Venus, although much more difficu…

> It is also possible to terraform Venus, although much more difficult than for Mars. We are facing an existential crisis in the form of climate warming on Earth that we are unable to address properly. The thing is, terraforming Earth is the easiest thing to do: we already live on it, it's already liveable. Mars, Venus or any other body in the solar system is magnitudes harder to transform on almost every aspect. So…

Exactly. I used to be a lifelong fan of anything space. But right now it is limited to people conducting actual science to get a better understanding of our universe. All the dick-swinging billionaires and geopolitical vanity projects of going to the Moon and Mars are utter follies. Every billion spent there, a waste of money that could be better spent. And I am not even talking about outer atmosphere ultra-rich people tourism in literal penis rockets. Utter pollution and waste. Let's wait to colonize other planets until after we get our own house in order.

Re: Colonization of Venus

#45

Earlier quoted context omitted.

From the point of view of exploitable resources, Venus is the opposite of Mars. On Mars, metals are very abundant and easy to extract, and also minerals suitable for making glass or ceramic materials are abundant, but the raw materials for making food and organic materials, like plastics, are very scarce and expensive to concentrate. On Venus, there are abundant resources for making organic materials and food (except…

> If not enough water would be found underground on Mars, that would be really difficult to transport from elsewhere. I was under the (uneducated) impression that there was a fair amount of water ice locked up in asteroids that are fairly easy to redirect into a Mars capture orbit.

"Fairly Easy" Is doing a lot of work there. Theoretically possible yes.

Re: Colonization of Venus

#49
post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> It is also possible to terraform Venus We can't even properly terraform inhospitable places within Earth. Hell, if anything we are very quickly un-terraforming Earth into a place inhospitable to human life.

If we could send all the terraformers from earth to mars we would so solve both problems at the same time

Sounds like a plan.

Re: Colonization of Venus

#50
space colonization, even if there were habitable planets within our reach, is not possible anymore.

you could, for example, send a million settlers to Kepler-69420, and with the TFR of 1.5 - an unrealistically high number - the colony would be extinct in just a few centuries. 1m becomes 100k in 200 years and 10k in 400 years.

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