New Mars Forums

Grypd, you are asking the right question.  Now that we know that we need Artificial Gravity, we need to find out how much.  I know there have been discussion on how much G we need to make the transition for Earth to Mars good just on a comfort and adapation standpoint.  But the question now is about our Immune system.
Is the human immune system so connected with it's evolution of Earth that it will only function to its fullest on Earth? If so then is it possible to develop a treatment to counter the change in G on Mars?
Or is it as simple as determining at what level of G does the immune system stop working.

http://www.scienceblog.com/cms/microgra … genes_9069

This is a link to a blog talking about microgravity and our decreased immune system. 
Even more of a reason to find a way to generate artificial G for a Mars mission.

It is not the tough conditions that will generally cause insanity, it the isolation and total contrast to what we are used to, the distance, the lack of any familiarity.  These are the factors that many psychologist feel will cause mental conditions on Mars, but hey no one knows how any bosy will handle it.  I am sure quiet a few of the early explores went crazy to some degree, maybe even committed sucide, we don't know their stories.  You never know how any one person will respond to trauma.  I live in Oklahoma City and saw 1st hand the different effects the Federal Building Bombing had on different survivors.  Uprooting yourself and moving to a different world in itself can be traumatic on some level.  Then add in all the possible things that could go wrong.  You will have to have psychiatrists on the first mission, or at least some one with a lot of skill in that field, because mental conditions or some sort are sure to develop, even if it is just interpersonal issues.
I can't imagine being crammed into a tin can for 4-6 months with the people I work with, without going a bit crazy, or homicidal.... LOL

Dook, I agree with you more than I would like too.  The dreamer in me would like to see these things happen on a compressed time scale, but the realist in me knows it will not be in my lifetime, (barring human longevity increases greatly) before we get to a viable colonization point on Mars.
If we could some how convince NASA to scrap all the crap that is holding us back, but bureaucrats rule and so we wait.

http://www.space.com/businesstechnology … tails.html

I was reading this site article when it came to me.  WTF.  Why are we even attempting this, because there isn't a better way???  Instead of using all this shuttle tech that is going to have to be completely overhauled, and according to the critics in the aforementioned article, may not work right anyway.
If this the model that NASA wants to use, "Apollo on 'roids", fine, whatever. but why doesn't  NASA dump some $$$ into SpaceX and shoot for using the Falcon 9 or whatever number they would be up to that would have the lifting capacity?
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Just for clarification.  I was not saying that the $20mil John Allen shelled out will get anyone to Mars.  What I was inferring was, there are a lot of rich mother F--kers out there in this world, if they chose to go combine their resources, and bring in others with the plans and desires to go to Mars, for whatever purpose, they could do it.  And they could do it a lot sooner than any nation could. 
If Dook wants to wait until Mars is a mini-Earth then fine, he has a good point, even those of us that think we want to go to that barren planet right now, for whatever our reasons, I doubt many of us would be able to or willing to stay.  To go to Mars while Mars is Mars is going to require a profound love for what the planet is, and a desire to be a trailblazer, to be able to detach from all material and emotional posessions and begin life anew. 
That is a breed of humanity that seems very rare indeed in this day and age.

What kind of velocity/speed would a tether be capable of?

BTW: Thanks for all the feedback everyone.

What I meant was.  To have the tether in LEO and as the cycler approached on its return to Mars fling the playload on an intercept course with the cycler.  ????

Just a question to show off my ignorance.
Would it be possible/feasible to build a couple of Ion driven tugs that would travel between Earth and Mars.  I believe I heard at some point that the longer you "burn" an Ion engine in space the faster it will go, up to some point.  If so, then if you were to launch a couple Ion tug boats to circle Mars-Earth and use the zip around each body's gravity to help propel them you would get some craft blazing circles around the inner solar system. 
Now with those blazing tugs you fling cargo vessels or manned vessels at them to be capture as they approach Earth and have the tugs zip on to Mars where the craft would jettison into orbit.  I know my science is weak here, but it sounds cool.  What do all you brilliant people think of that?

Go ahead and laugh if needed, I have a strong ego.