Should We Build a Nature Reserve on Mars?

There are billions of us. There will be 11 billion humans when the population peaks around the year 2200. According to the World Wildlife Federation, we are losing between 200 and 2,000 species each year because of our population growth.

One way to mitigate the damage from the clash between humans and nature is to create more habitat according to an engineer from the UK. Terran preserves can be built on Mars.

Paul L. Smith is a civil engineer at the University of Bristol. He explains in an article in the International Journal of Astrobiology how we could build a nature preserve on Mars. Smith said that the ETNR would be a psychological refuge and a botanical garden.

The idea might seem crazy on the surface. Smith is an engineer. He isn't saying that an ethnr on Mars is near. He believes that we will colonize Mars and that humans will keep putting pressure on Earth. He says that they should be involved in colonization efforts. Smith isn't the first to think about this. He leans on other people's research.

You need to evaluate how possible it is before you can make a decision. An engineer would be a good person to dig into that question.

The day length on Mars is similar to Earth's. There are systems to keep an enclosed spherical preserve so the temperature can be managed without too much complexity. There is plenty of frozen water underground, so the problem of a water supply isn't impossible.

One of the easier problems to address is Mars and Earth's atmospheric makeup. Whatever atmosphere is desired, an enclosed environment can be created. The environment can be regulated by plant life. The temperature and pressure can be adjusted easily.

When a more detailed analysis is done, the issues are more confusing. Smith's analysis is thorough.

There is a radiation environment on Mars. The surface of Mars is exposed to dangerous levels of ionizing UV radiation. Smith writes thatMars is sterilizing due to the lack of ozone. UV radiation is part of the metabolism of some animals. Earth life forms don't adapt to increased UV and need protection.

Smith explains that glass/plastic combinations can exclude harmful wavelength and that it can be controlled.

There are more questions about magnetic fields. The magnetic field protects Earth from the sun's harmful rays and it also protects the ozone layer. We don't have a good idea of how Earth's magnetic fields affect life. magnetoreception is used by some animals to move around. There is a puzzle that needs to be understood better. An artificial magnetic field could be created in a CTTE.

The seasons change as well. There are changes to the makeup of the area. Mars' seasonal variability is different from Earth's. Smith says temporality determines critical developmental stages, individual physiologies and inter specific relationships.

The phenology of plants is influenced by the period and winter chill. Bud set, bud break, and flowering in plants are included in pheology. It also includes more complex animal behavior. Among individuals and different species, those behaviors are closely related. It will be difficult to duplicate that.

We are not isolated from the seasons in the tropics. Smith is correct in saying that autumn colour, winter silence, spring flowers and summer leafiness are critical to psychological restoration.

There are differences between Mars and Earth. The moon is large and powerful. Mars has two potato-shaped moons that have almost no effect on the planet. The two small rocks on Mars couldn't generate tides. There may be areas on Mars where the moons are not seen.

Smith defines a zeitgeber as a natural phenomenon which acts as a cue in the regulation of the body's circadian rhythms. The day length on Mars is the same as Earth's.

Mars doesn't get as much sunlight as Earth. Plants on Mars won't match Earth's without artificial augmentation, but research shows it's enough for photosynthesis. It's an obstacle that can be overcome by engineering and technology, but it's more complicated than before.

Smith talks about the benefits of placing nature preserves in lava tubes. Artificial light augmentation is needed in those instances.

The soil would need to be used by anETNR. Mars has a basaltic crust that is rich in vitamins and minerals. Smith writes about the benefits of basalt-derived soils with volcanic ash. The dissolution of basalt can increase the soil's acidity. Plants need nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium to grow.

Nitrogen is plentiful in Martian soil for plants to grow, but they need more than that. Smith writes that these are all reports from Mars or Mars meteorites. There are chemicals involved in soil fertility that aren't used by plants. It is a complex puzzle.

All the plants need is contained in the earth soil. It has a lot of organisms like Earthworms. There are creatures in the soil. Will the whole system have to be recreated? That is an extraordinary level of knowledge. Some of this can be replicated in the regolith, but not all of it. We don't know how confident we are that we can build a complete soil system on Mars.

The regolith on Mars has more toxins than Earth soil. Regolith is toxic to life forms on Mars. Increased levels of perchlorates and hydrogen peroxide in Martian regolith make it a highly toxic mix. Is there a way to deal with that? It's possible. One of the most complex tasks is to build soil from scratch.

There are Dust storms on Mars. In storms that are larger than the US, some of Mars' regolith is sent up in the air. It's a problem for solar panels on Mars. The amount of solar energy reaching the surface is lowered.

Mars has to be accounted for as well. One of the factors that affect plant growth isgravity. There could be a tree on Mars.

“Experiments indicate 0.3 g (< Mars) sufficient to trigger gravitropic responses, but that meristematic competence can be lost under lunar-like (0.17 g) gravity,” Smith writes. Gravitropic responses are plant life’s response to gravity and work in two ways. Charles Darwin showed that plant roots show positive gravitropism, meaning they grow toward the center of gravity, while stems grow away from gravity. Research shows that plants can grow and photosynthesize in microgravity, and astronauts have grown different types of plants on the ISS, where gravity is 89% of Earth’s. But those experiments were done on selective crops. No trees have been grown on the ISS.

It is possible that some plants will tolerate Mars' gravity. The forest function is also affected.

There is more to gravity than just plant growth. There are a lot of other things that need to be accounted for. The leaf and propagule fall, leaping, flight, deadwood collapse, raindrop impact and drainage of water contribute dynamism. Lower gravity could give some benefits. Mars' lower light could affect plants in a number of ways. Some of the negative effects could be mitigated by lower gravity.

Smith says trying to recreate a specific forest is counter productive. They are too difficult to duplicate. Earth's forests are dependent on environmental and evolutionary pressures that are different from those in Mars. No single forest food web has been fully mapped. It would take time to establish itself in the environment of Mars. It is the goal to introduce species and see which ones adapt to the new environment.

The species should be considered an ecological part of the functional ecosystems. Development of new ecosystems is possible, even though it is not feasible to replicate Earth forests. He writes that Mars' forests would not be like Earth's, but could still offer wonder.

Smith has more details in his article. This is a big topic and we are only beginning to think about all the issues. We need some of the right species if we are going to be able to take a break on Mars. It's a poor TTE if there is no birds or butterflies. Homesickness may be worsened by such lack. There is a feeling of being in a forest. We could all do without mosquitos.

There are ethical constraints. Some of our efforts won't work. Do we have the right to transport other life forms if they can't survive? If the entire effort was part of sustaining all Earth life in the event of a calamity, their suffering would be with us.

These questions are not easy to answer.

We don't know how life all works together. We don't understand when whales beach themselves or when a huge bird die-off occurs. We can't expect the conditions to be frozen so that there aren't any deaths. New niches can be exploited by other life forms. We have to accept nature if we want to recreate it.

Smith emphasizes a point that can get lost in the discussion. The evolution of Homo sapiens wasn't in a vacuum. We can't survive without other life forms. Our guts are colonized bybacteria and without them we are screwed. We need other lifeforms to survive and they need other lifeforms to survive as well. The web of life is not easy to understand.

Do we have the know-how to rebuild an Earthly environment on Mars? Asking that question will lead to a more ominous question.

We have to answer the first one before we are ready.

Nature is the overarching structure that governs our lives and we need it more than it needs us. We have a responsibility to preserve nature.

Smith writes that world leaders should be concerned about the future of life in the Universe. This is an important duty on a planet with limited habitability. The survival of life is the most important thing.

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