Question: How likely is it people will one day live on mars

Stephen O'Connor answered on 6 Mar 2019: last edited 6 Mar 2019 11:09 am

Good question and something that a lot of us are very interested in!
I think it will happen, possibly in the next fifty years, but there are many difficult challenges to overcome.
First we need transportation like a big spaceship that can travel a long distance that humans can live on safely for a long time. With our current technology it would take 6-12 months to get there. Companies like SpaceX are designing one right now! Follow this link to learn more about it: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SpaceX_Mars_transportation_infrastructure
So assuming we land there safely after our long journey, we now need to survive there. The environment on Mars is much different than on Earth. Mars is colder, has lower gravity, doesn’t have the air we breathe or water to drink (it may have some), and is exposed to a lot more harmful radiation coming from the Sun. This link gives a nice overview: https://www.space.com/27202-living-on-mars-conditions-infographic.html
It will take several missions to the planet to set up homes we can live in. We would have to bring lots of materials with us to build them. For basic survival we would have to bring so much equipment for: food and water production, oxygen support, communications, toilets, power, fuel and the list goes on. There is a lot more information here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colonization_of_Mars
Thanks for your question. Maybe you will be one of the people that will help us get there! 😀