The planet Mars is a planet without life. Technological advances that are increasingly extraordinary challenge humans to reach new things that have not been conquered so far. One example is a mission to outer space.
It used to be impossible to venture into space. Until this mystery was finally solved when the Vostok I driven by Yurin Gagarin managed to land on the moon.
The success of Yuri Gagarin has prompted the launch of various other space missions. They are not only satisfied to land on the moon, but are also obsessed with other planets in this solar system. One of them is the planet Mars.
Mars is a red planet. Therefore, this planet is also known as the Red Planet. The red color is due to the iron oxide content on the planet's surface.
Life on Planet Mars
Conditions on Planet Mars are indeed more conducive to life when compared to Planet Venus. In terms of climate, Mars is more like Earth than the other planets. The reason is the similarity of the axes on the two planets.
The planet Mars has seasons twice that of Earth. However, that does not mean that Mars can be used as an alternative place to live for humans. This is because this planet has very low air pressure and temperature.
The surface temperature of Mars is between -87°C in winter to -5â°C in summer. The long temperature range is due to the very thin atmospheric layer that is unable to store the sun's heat and its low atmospheric pressure.
Another condition that is quite extreme for humans is the air which contains a lot of carbon monoxide. As a result, if humans want to live in these places, they have to use breathing apparatus.
Not only that. Dust particles on Mars are very dangerous. The dust particles contain very fine silicate minerals. If this is inhaled, then the silicate mineral content will react with the water in the lungs.
As a result, chemical compounds are formed that are very dangerous because they are destructive, and even have the potential to lead to death.
According to Richard Williams, Head of Health and Medical Officer at NASA, dust particles on Mars contain Perchlorates, a kind of salt of HClO4 (perchloric acid). Perchlorates content can damage the function of the thyroid gland.
The thyroid gland plays an important role in the metabolic processes of the human body. This is because the thyroid gland plays a role in the process of making protein, burning energy, and synergizing with other hormones in the metabolic process of the human body.
If the thyroid gland is damaged, it is clear that the human body's metabolic processes will be disrupted. As a result, the entire body system is also disturbed.
Some argue that the astronauts will be safe from the threat of dust particles because they have been equipped with astronaut suits. It turns out that the fact is not so. The toxic dust particles will continue to stick until they land again on earth. And this is of course very dangerous.
Even more fatal, water as a source of life was not able to last long while on the surface of Mars due to low pressure on this planet.
These characteristics make Mars not ideal as a place to live for humans. Moreover, a number of space missions sent there until the end of the 20th century have not found traces of life there.
It's just that there is still debate about it. According to NASA scientists, the Vikings have found signs of life on the planet. Unfortunately, after being reviewed, the Vikings turned out to be not reliable enough to track the traces of life on Mars.
The research conducted by Phoenix shows that Mars has a very alkaline pH. It also contains a number of important minerals such as chloride, potassium, sodium, and magnesium.
Nutrients in the soil are also capable of supporting life. Other data suggest that the inorganic components found in the Mars meteorite may have come from fossilized microbes.
Surprisingly, despite the fact that Mars is currently unfit as a place to live for humans, it turns out that space travel missions to the planet are not empty of enthusiasts. One of them is what Mars One has to offer.
A Dutch company intends to send a mission to the Red Planet. This mission requires six groups, each group consisting of four people. The plan is that the first batch will be delivered in 2022.
Although this mission plan is still long and full of risks, it turns out that many enthusiastically welcome it. In 2012 there were already around 10 thousand applicants from one hundred countries in the world.
The mission trip to Mars, which was initiated by Mars One, is indeed quite unique. This mission is planned to be packaged in the form of a Reality Show so that it can be broadcast on live television.
The participants who want to take part in the mission must meet a number of criteria that have been set by Mars One. Among other things, must be over 18 years old, have a good medical history, strong endurance, good personality, and be able to speak English even though it is not fluent.
The latest news, the applicants who have registered for an excursion mission to Planet Mars are 78 thousand participants. That's a pretty fantastic number, isn't it?
Even though when they arrived on Planet Mars, mission participants had to be prepared to face limited housing, water difficulties, and of course an environment that was very dangerous to health. Moreover, there is no guarantee that they can return home safely to earth.
Asteroid Strikes
Not only the environment is not friendly, Planet Mars every year also does not escape from asteroid attacks. Scientists predict there are at least 200 small asteroids that hit the planet every year. The asteroid strike caused the formation of a crater with a minimum diameter of 3.9 meters.
Asteroids are comet fragments. Its size is too small to reach the earth's surface. The asteroid will burn up before it reaches the earth's surface.
According to NASA research, currently there are about 248 asteroid strike locations scattered at several points on the surface of Mars.
At the location of the attack was found a number of craters. In one year, there are three to ten new craters formed. As a result, there are thousands of craters formed there. Reportedly, currently there are about 43 thousand craters with a diameter of more than 5 km. One of the large craters that can be seen from the earth is Hellas Crater.
Hellas Crater is one of the largest impact craters in the solar system. This crater stretches for 2,300 km, stretching from east to west. The center is at 70° East and 42.7° South.
Thus, although living on the planet Mars is something that is still being debated, it turns out that this actually invites curiosity to conduct further research.
In fact, many ordinary people are interested in traveling there as the program initiated by Mars One. Are you one of them? The choice is yours.