While the idea of sending astronauts aloft never to return is jarring upon first hearing, the rationale for one-way trips into space has both historical and practical roots. Colonists and pilgrims seldom set off for the New World with the expectation of a return trip, usually because the places they were leaving were pretty intolerable anyway. Give us a century or two and we may turn the whole planet into a place from which many people might be happy to depart.
Krauss also points out that he knows people who would be willing to go right now.
If it sounds unrealistic to suggest that astronauts would be willing to leave home never to return alive, then consider the results of several informal surveys I and several colleagues have conducted recently. One of my peers in Arizona recently accompanied a group of scientists and engineers from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory on a geological field trip. During the day, he asked how many would be willing to go on a one-way mission into space. Every member of the group raised his hand. The lure of space travel remains intoxicating for a generation brought up on “Star Trek” and “Star Wars.”
Would you guys be willing to travel to Mars knowing you’ll never come back? Would Michele Bachmann being elected president help in your decision? Four more years of Obama? Vote below.
Hilarious comment from Mr. Glum, “Um, pilgrims and colonists were going somewhere with an oxygen atmosphere.”
Good point!
I’d go once a small colony was established. I wouldn’t want to go to Roanoke but I’d be happy in Williamsburg.
Working with two or three hundred other people to help terraform Mars would be great life’s work.
As far as dying there of natural causes. I’d guess it would be dangerous enough that a good percentage of the population people would probably die in accidents, but this is the way that humans have lived throughout most of our history. It’s only recently that you can expect to die in your old age of natural causes. Coincidentally this has taken the fun out of exploration.
So far, it looks like there are 153 pussies that said no.
[And were you one of them? - ed.]
If the governemnt promised to treat them as colonists and not dead ducks, you’d have millions of volunteers. You could send supplies every few months, and eventually they’d be self sustaining.
Of course, all’s well and good until congress cuts their budget…
OK If we were headed to Omicron Ceti 3, hell yeah – let’s go! My wife couldn’t keep her cats! Otherwise the real point for the exploration of space is resource collection.
I can’t believe there are 200 pussies who said no!
I would vote for Alfred1 to go. Yes.
Thats the same decision I feel I’d be making in deciding to get a work visa for India. The fear vs allure of the unknown and strange places.
I think I’d “rather” go to Mars. No atmosphere, no smells.
I grew up exploring the desert I wouldn’t mind growing old(er) exploring a new one.
Sign me up.
Sister Mary: Why did all them wimmen say no?
#26 Mars has an atmosphere: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atmosphere_of_Mars Not sure how it smells though.
OK, send older people (not really old) because you don’t want to bring them back.
Lighter gravity would affect bone density which would cause problems if they came back.
No decent atmosphere would let radiation play hell with their DNA.
The idea of one-way trips has been the basis of a few Science Fiction books, one of my favorites being the first “Rocheworld” book by Robert L. Forward.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocheworld
In the book, scientists were -competing- for the chance to spend the rest of their lives doing research & making discoveries that no one on earth could.
An equal number of men & women are sent, but they are all sterilized so that they won’t have any children – because it would be immoral to bring children into such a “dead-end” situation.
The inter-personal relationships in the book are like a precursor to some of the current “reality” TV shows – except that no one can be “voted off the island” on a spaceship.
The ending of the book also explores what it would be like to be the last member of such an expedition – elderly and infirm – after all the other people have died due to accident, suicide, or natural causes.
The idea of a lifetime of research – with no possibility of funding cuts – is probably very attractive to most scientists, but most people don’t think about how a bunch of elderly people would take care of themselves as their bodies deteriorate with age.
yes.
I didn’t read the article yet but yes I would be willing to die on mars and the rest of my family would probably be willing to come along.
31. The idea of one-way trips has been the basis of a few Science Fiction books…
I seem to remember one where they would clone this guy and send his clone into space. Of course the clone would die and they’d have to send another one. Finally, for some utterly contrived reason, they had to send him and not another clone. Of course, for some utterly contrived reason he made it back somehow.
It was so utterly contrived I’m shocked it was never made into a movie starring Keanu Reeve.
I believe I read somewhere that JPL was founded (or co-founded) by some devil worshiper(s), or cultists. And possibly there’s still a strong enfluence of them today. So it would come to little surprise to me, if they now want their own planet to run amok on. And isolationism would be their mode of choice. Maybe Tom Cruise will move to Mars.
#34 Glenn said, “Maybe Tom Cruise will move to Mars”
Xenu can provide Tom with better transportation than that. Maybe he can go further out to a whole other galaxy, although unfortunately, that will not be far enough away.
I have a better idea, send pedro and alfred1 there instead. them dying on mars would move the world forward.
Robots first to build the stuff.
When enough of a viable situation exists (green houses and the rest) i see no reason why it should be one way.
Lower atmosphere and less gravity do have some benefits.
Just park the return craft in orbit, or even send it later, the launcher would as here be just fuel and a shell for the people to get up with.
Perhaps a rail launcher there would be more viable then here too, to cut down fuel expenses even more.
But if one could die by old age i see many willing to go.
And as for colonization, do the old fashioned way, send convicts at the start.
as opposed to having a death panel here on earth, where do I sign?
I would be happy to go.
To die off Earth would be wonderful. No one has done that.
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I’ve told my wife I would go given the chance. I’m sure there are a few here that would go and a few that would want to see me go.