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Original poster

Why would anyone want a one way trip to Mars?

83 replies

dougierose · 17/02/2015 19:53

I suppose they feel that they'll get their names into the history books. But what a waste: young, gifted, so much to offer our own Earth world. Are they mad or just mega egotistical?

OP posts:
Titsalinabumsquash · 17/02/2015 20:15

I hear one of them wants to conceive and have a child out there (up there?) that's surely got to be quite dangerous in itself, even if she did live to see a full term pregnancy.

Why 63 days? What do they think will finish them off?

Cornettoninja · 17/02/2015 20:15

I wouldn't touch it with someone else's barge pole but of humanity had relied on people like me we'd still be scavenging Grin

I suppose some people have a natural desire to explore and push the boundaries into the unknown. These could be the pioneers of space travel and our great great grandchildren will consider a holiday to Mars no different to a holiday to Florida.

Pretty sure some of the families of the original settlers to America were bonkers (and they were, a fair few expeditions sent to colonise went off to their deaths) and look at America now.

Original poster
dougierose · 17/02/2015 20:16

Oh, Noisy, my DH is watching a sci fi programme about EXACTLY that concept!

OP posts:
LaurieFairyCake · 17/02/2015 20:17

But then the child would die Shock

That's so sick

SwedishEdith · 17/02/2015 20:18

This one's profile says "I am a young, motivated, fun-loving person. I love meeting new people. I am full of ideas and boredom is not something that I am familiar with." That sounds slightly incompatible with this mission.

SurlyCue · 17/02/2015 20:18

Am I the only cynical one who thinks especially as this is being touted as a reality show alongside, that it'll actually turn out to be a massive con, the "astronauts" will think they're being blasted off into space but in reality will be in one of those moving simulator thingys and 4 months later they will "arrive" at Mars

Grin that would be pretty funny cruel. Didnt that happen a few years ago. Maybe with people thinking they were going to the moon though.

SwedishEdith · 17/02/2015 20:20

Only 63 days? Shock Hadn't read that.

AwfulBeryl · 17/02/2015 20:20

Oh yes Surley, it was on channel 4. Grin

SurlyCue · 17/02/2015 20:20

That sounds slightly incompatible with this mission.

Grin totally!

OhFlippityBolax · 17/02/2015 20:21

Idiots The lot of them

But I assume full psychological profiling is being undertaKen

If my child volunteered I'd buy them a gun. I can't even fathom why anyone would want to do it at such young ages

CaffeLatteIceCream · 17/02/2015 20:21

Oh come on....this would be a HUGE achievement for science. And for humanity. There's so much to learn about life, the universe, the origins of planets etc. etc.

That's what we do as human beings...we find stuff out. We push back frontiers and learn.

Stephen Hawking thinks we'll have no option but to leave this planet one day...these are our very first steps. We should be enormously proud of those people.

I wouldn't want to go...don't like flying, apart from anything else!....but I can see why someone would want to and why they think it would be an amazing use of their life.

RandomNPC · 17/02/2015 20:21

I might sign on for a trip to Mars if I didn't have kids.
A joy ride on Branson's exploding death shuttle though? No thanks!

finallydelurking · 17/02/2015 20:22

noisyoyster I had had that thought too!

Tinkerball · 17/02/2015 20:22

I understand it a little if it was just for a small period of time but to give up your life and never return to Earth? No thanks!

RainingSocks · 17/02/2015 20:22

I agree with SurlyCue. There is a strong historical precedent for heading off into the unknown, sometimes for scientific curiosity or exploration and sometimes in the hope of finding wealth. It's a regular enough thing throughout history to show that there is a small proportion of every population with an inbuilt desire to strike out into the unknown, even if the rest of us can't understand it. Anyway, they're not planned to have an immediate death, as I understand it they will get supplies from Earth and technical support and have a reasonable chance of living for many years, although not as long as they would have lived on Earth.

OhFlippityBolax · 17/02/2015 20:23

I can imagine the Americans would be finished off first... And why is it disproportionately weighted to American passengers?

MagpieCursedTea · 17/02/2015 20:23

Not something I'd want to do! But it's human nature to want to go further and explore.
What's the actual plan once they get there?

NoisyOyster · 17/02/2015 20:27

I'd just have a bit more faith in it if it wasn't being funded by the same guy who dreamt up Big Brother Grin

If you're going to go off Into the great unknown wouldn't you want it to be at the hands of the great scientists of the day and governmental backing yadda yadda.... Not some tv crew who would be more interested in getting the right camera angle than the physics calculations.....

ThisFenceIsComfy · 17/02/2015 20:30

OhFlippity I think the ones in the different coloured jumpers will be the first to die Grin

Original poster
dougierose · 17/02/2015 20:34

Just asked DH what the programme was and it's "Ascension" - it was on the Sci Fi channel.

OP posts:
SurlyCue · 17/02/2015 20:35

If you're going to go off Into the great unknown wouldn't you want it to be at the hands of the great scientists of the day and governmental backing

Absoloutely. It also amazes me that this is being opened to the generL public to be the pioneers rather than experts who have done all the research etc. but i suppose they need the experts here and the experts have the foresight to know it will be a disaster

OhFlippityBolax · 17/02/2015 20:35

red jumper and new recruits not seen before surely fence

Original poster
dougierose · 17/02/2015 20:36

www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2790729/one-way-trip-mars-ll-die-68-days-inhabitants-planned-red-planet-colony-suffocate-months-study-claims.html

Sorry - it was 68 days. That make me feel so much better.

OP posts:
ThisFenceIsComfy · 17/02/2015 20:37

Yep, we will be able to tell anyway as it will be the one who had the least screen time during the reality show.

OhFlippityBolax · 17/02/2015 20:39

What's going to happen about the gravity situation? Surely it's not the same on Mars as it is here?

Wonder if it'll turn all hunger games on us