Survival Of The Fittest Or Fittest Of The Survival?
Can You Survive On Another Planet?
Okay let's not lie, we've all had that dream to go into outer space and live on another planet. But while for most of us this might feel like an unachievable dream, there are people who are actively working on making these dreams a reality, and we're a lot closer to this new reality than you'd think. The movie "The Martian" illustrates this fact very well, in the film, we're not only told about the challenges we'd have to face if we were to live on another planet but are also shown it. Not only that the film can give us a good idea of whether we'd be capable enough to survive on an extra-terrestrial planet.
The Martian
There are two aspects that determine whether or not we'd be able to survive on another planet, the first being the individual themselves, their training, and the other support that they are receiving, and the other aspect being that of the planet that the individual is traveling to, it's atmospheric and environmental conditions.
One small step for man!
It's a little-known fact that astronauts are some of the most capable people, both on and off this planet. But they aren't just born that way, these people train for a better part of their life to even qualify to go to outer space and what might surprise you is that out of all the astronauts in training a lot of them don't end up qualifying.
The first part of an astronauts training is making sure they can make it through the launch. This means that the astronauts are put through trials, where they experience increasing amounts of g-force. This trains the astronauts's bodies to not pass out when they reach high speeds during the launch. This is all done with flights in special planes or rides in a special machine that spins the astronauts at incredibly high speeds.
Next the astronauts are taught the ins and outs of all the machinery that they are going to use. These machines range from the space shuttle they will launch in and the international space station, and many of its functions. This is an important aspect of astronaut training as when in outer space these astronauts will not have access to instant tech support, so they are trained in a way where if they face any issue they have the knowledge required to solve the problem themselves.
One of the most important and also most saught after training is that of the space suits. The astronauts are taught how to where the suits and all of it's safety precautions. Moreover they are taught how to move with the suits on and how to deal with zero gravity. This is done in two different training scenarios, the first one being a recreation of the international space station where the individuals are attached to wires that make them float around to simulate zero gravity and the second scenario places the individuals in the suit and under water, to give them an idea of how mobile they will be when in these suits.
This video explains all these aspects of astronaut training in more summarised way and with visual aids:
One Giant Leap For Mankind!
Now while the above mentioned aspects cover the astronauts training for going to the moon or the international space station, when it comes to an actual manned mission to another planet we're still quite a ways away. NASA is required to land a manned mission on mars by the year 2033, and so they are already in preparation.
Astronauts are being given extensive training that would help them survive not only a very long flight but also, to help them live on the planet. This includes training in rationing, botany and teaching them about what sort of environment they will be landing in. This is showcased very well in the film "The Martian", where the main characters are scientists that have been taught everything they need to live on mars.
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| Our solar system |
This is where the second aspect of survival comes in, astronauts are trained according to the environment they will be entering, but they can't be trained if we don't know what that environment will be like. So the second aspect is that of the planet itself, it's atmosphere, environment, weather and every other hurdle that comes with it.
The first thing that astronauts will have to worry about is the atmosphere of the new planet, this will include researching whether or not the planet has breathable air, meaning for us humans whether or not there is a presence of oxygen within the atmosphere. The next thing would be to determine the density of the atmosphere, making sure that if and when an astronaut lands on the planet, they don't get crushed due to the atmosphereic pressure. This is all leads to the weather on the planet, we must determine whether the planet will have extreme heat or extreme cold or even normal weather and then develop the astronauts gear, like the suit, accordingly. But these aspects won't matter if the land on the planet itself just isn't suited for human life, as it could be toxic or radiated and could result in astronauts losing their lives. All this research must be conducted before a manned mission to any other planet can be conducted as without it we could be sending the astronauts to their demise.
This video shows us how long we could survive on another planet in a brief and humorous way:
So I hope that this whole thing was able to give you an idea of what it would take to survive on another planet and how it isn't just about flying to another planet, you also have to worry about what awaits you on that planet and have to be prepared for any challenge that you might face. So, what do you think, do you have what it takes to be like Mark Wotney(the protagonist from "The Martian") and survive on mars?
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