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Martian-born babies part of the plan

Credit: Alexander Trunkovsky/MarsPolar


Scott Sutherland
Meteorologist/Science Writer

Tuesday, May 26, 2015, 5:56 PM - So far, plans to colonize Mars are simply looking to put the first humans on the Red Planet. But a new project, MarsPolar, is the first that includes plans to have the very first humans born on another planet.

Mars One will strictly forbid sex for its colonists. NASA has had a along-standing "no hanky-panky in space" rule for its astronauts and this will likely continue for any mission to Mars. The MarsPolar project, though, is going that extra step, to not only set up a human colony on the Red Planet, but also have their colonists give birth to the very first Martians.

MarsPolar, an international project based in Dubai but including experts from the Russian Federation, the United Arab Emirates, Poland, Ukraine and the United States, is just in the startup stages. Its mission, as detailed so far, involves ideas drawn from various plans put forward by other organizations:

  • Mars Society's "Mars Semi-Direct plan" - which would keep an orbiting spacecraft around Mars while a lander took colonists down to the surface, and includes a return vehicle that would launch from the surface back up to the orbiter for return to Earth.
  • SpaceX's Falcon Heavy and Red Dragon for launching from Earth and getting the colonists to Mars.
  • Mars One's schedule for landing teams of colonists (4-6 each in MarsPolar's case), in succession, two years apart.

The parts that differ significantly from previous plans are the specific focus on landing teams at Mars' north polar region, and the idea that the teams should not only be allowed to procreate, but that this should be an integral part of the plan.

As MarsPolar states on their website (emphasis, mine):

It is projected that every two years the colony will grow by interval of each successive crew of colonists (and through projected, programmed child birth of crew members creating families of colonists).


The Mars Transfer Vehicle (MTV), which includes SpaceX's Red Dragon capsule. Credit: MarsPolar

Also, unlike Mars One's plan, which has colonists making a one-way trip to the Red Planet, the MarsPolar mission includes a (delayed) return flight.

After the first decade on Mars, during which time the colony would be fully established (and possibly the first Martian humans born!), there would be the option for a return to Earth, thanks to a special robotic lander - the aptly named Earth Return Vehicle or ERV.

This would be something designed and built after the first colonists were on their way, and would arrive sometime after the colony was established. Capable of manufacturing fuel while it sat on the Martian surface, the ERV would blast off, overcoming Mars' weaker gravity (escape velocity on Mars is less than half of what it is here on Earth), rendezvous and dock with the orbiting Mars Transfer Vehicle and then make the flight back to Earth.

This could make MarsPolar a slightly more attractive prospect for some who are worried about never seeing Earth again.

Martian Humans?

There are undoubtedly questions about whether it is even possible for people to have children while in space or on Mars. So much of our reproduction is dependent on gravity - not just the physical act of sex but also the development of cells.

Mars has gravity, of course - over twice as much as the Moon. However, with that gravity being only a little over one-third what we experience here on Earth, it could cause problems. We already know so much about the effects of low gravity on humans from missions on the Space Shuttles and the International Space Station. Muscles weaken without the constant pull of gravity to resist against. Bones lose calcium and strength. The immune system weakens. Eyesight becomes worse. Mental faculties suffer.

Add to this the higher radiation exposure, due to Mars' thinner atmosphere and lack of a large planetary magnetic field, and there are plenty of things that can adversely affect a developing fetus.

MarsPolar doesn't plan on launching anyone to Mars until at least the 2020s, with the goal of establishing the colony by 2029. So, there is time to research these issues and possibly develop solutions to them.

Sources: MarsPolar | NASA | SpaceXMars Society | Mars One | NASA

WATCH BELOW: Mars may be The Red Planet, but NASA's Curiosity rover reveals that the planet's sunsets are blue!

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