Blog Post

It is Doubtful Whether Mars Ever Had Large Oceans

A Blog Post

Let me be the first one to say this. Considering whatever images and information I found on NASA and other places, I can say that Mars probably never had large oceans like the ones we see here on earth. Undoubtedly, it has many earth like features, but looks are deceptive. Whoever is planning to go there and establish large colonies, Mars will prove to be a big disappointment for them. Nuking Mars to create atmosphere is a very immature idea. It may look good on paper, but it will render Mars permanently uninhabitable, rendering its limited water resources polluted for centuries. It is also not going to alter the extreme temperatures on Mars. If it is so simple, why do not we test it here in the Sahara or the Australian desert? It is not possible to alter the orbit of Mars, its tilt, or its position in the solar system, which are the major factors in shaping Mar's climate and atmosphere.

Mars is not cut out for human settlement. We must acknowledge the fact. We should not mess with the universe, trying to transform planets, which is not only economically not feasible, but even dangerous to our very existence. We must take the planets as they come and use them to our advantage. The solar system is our backyard, and we must intelligently use it and exploit it to our best advantage. We may set up colonies but only for exploration and exploitation, not for habitation. It is more practical to plan in advance and colonize the space between the earth and the moon and build large cities, rather than altering the inhospitable planets for human habitation. It is strange that the very people who keep cautioning about climate change on earth are advocating the idea that we can alter Mars climate and make it habitable. They should first test those ideas on earth and help millions of people who live in inhospitable climate.

It will be better if we send robotic missions to Mars and establish mining posts, and a space lift, to mine the planet for its resources. It is a better option rather than pushing the humanity into an inhospitable world. The planet seems to possess many metals, minerals and valuable resources that are commonly found in desert like conditions, whch can greatly augument our depleting resources on earth. Mars might have had rivers, lakes, and large water bodies, but not oceans of the kind that exists on the earth. It explains why Mars surface looks so inert and lifeless. Life is supported by water, but for life to evolve and thrive on a large scale and for a long time, we need large oceans. We do not find any signs of the existence of life upon Mars in the past. It might have had, if at all, microorganism and viruses, but not complex life forms such as plants, trees, birds, fish, and animals. Life happened on earth because of the oceans. On Mars you do not find any telltale signs that it had oceans once. If it had oceans, there would have been large deposits of salt on the ground. We do not see any salt there except perhaps in small quantities. I am therefore highly skeptical that we will ever be able to find any life on Mars.