Elon Musk did a presentation at the 2016 IAC conference yesterday, describing the launch and travel system that SpaceX is planning to develop for sending 100+ people to Mars per spaceship/trip. Also gave some numbers and specifics on the vehicles, and the timeline. Even more, he imagines the ship may be used to visit the outer planets if refueled and launched from Mars or the inner asteroid belt.

The presentation is an hour long, 2nd link. If you don't have time, an animation showing the overall system is in the 1st link. Both are videos from the SpaceX YouTube channel.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0qo78R_yYFA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H7Uyfqi_TE8

I am quite excited about and am looking forward to SpaceX's efforts. Didn't see a thread so I thought I'd start one.

Also, Musk has been pretty much unconcerned about planetary protection. SETI is about intelligent life, not about microbial life. Anyone have an opinion on contamination of Martian ecosystem and potential science to be done, if anything is even alive on Mars?

Mars should be sterile due to it's temperature and bombardment with high energy radiation.

Mars should be sterile due to it's temperature and bombardment with high energy radiation.

Yes, but is has cavities that are shielded and may have higher temperatures. I know that caves in the Carso (Karst) region above Trieste have the same temperature all year long.
Tullio

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If I remember correctly, Musk told someone in a Q&A that he was skeptical that any life is on Mars, and that he would put colonization as a bigger priority since his argument for doing it now is that we should take the opportunity to do so, whenever the opportunity appears. Because the chance of extinction is always present, or the collapse of technology.

I'm leaning towards that perspective, but I would hope any colonization plans would leave some areas with scientific potential untouched for future study. It's not like the 1st colony could spread all over the planet anyway. Probably be centuries before that happens. Maybe a bigger concern for planetary protection is if the colony begins terraforming efforts as soon as possible. But still, that would be a slow process.

There will be some that,if any form of life is found on Mars, will vehemently oppose manned landings on Mars for any reason. But I would guess that those people will be overruled by the people in charge.

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Bob DeWoody

My motto: Never do today what you can put off until tomorrow as it may not be required. This no longer applies in light of current events.

If I remember correctly, Musk told someone in a Q&A that he was skeptical that any life is on Mars, and that he would put colonization as a bigger priority since his argument for doing it now is that we should take the opportunity to do so, whenever the opportunity appears. Because the chance of extinction is always present, or the collapse of technology.

In one sense that sounds kind of a hasty way to justify it, but on the other hand, I can see his point.

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The mind is a weird and mysterious place

We really need it, right now...'cause people don't know what to do on Earth anymore! Just check the bunch of people waving a hand over a "nuclear button".
:/

So, hopefully - we'll spread out! ;)

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non-profit org. Play4Life in Zagreb, Croatia, EU