Human exploration of Mars is no longer the stuff of science fiction. The United States could very likely send its first delegation to the red planet in 2033. If SpaceX, a private company dedicated to space travel and exploration, has any say in it, humans will reach Mars as early as 2022. As amazing as this seems, studying Mars is expensive, difficult, and dangerous. The most important three questions are as follows: Why should we do it? How are we going to get there? How much will it cost? Studying the evolution of other planets furthers our knowledge of our universe as well as our planet.

Today, Mars is too cold and the atmosphere is too thin for life to exist on the surface. However, evidence suggests that life may have existed in bacterial form billions of years ago. The planet must have been warm enough at one point to support life. Discovering what caused the change could help scientists better understand Earth’s climate. Also, studying sediments, rocks, and soils, as well as volcanoes and meteoroid impact sites, can help scientists study details of Earth’s evolution.

Exploring Mars could lead to colonization.

Settling other planets is the most attractive aspect of space exploration. It brings to mind entire galaxies filled with human outposts, discovering amazing landscapes and species, and possibly finding intelligent life similar to our own. Studying Mars is one of the first steps along the way. The benefits go well beyond the “wow” factor. Colonies would be able to reap raw materials—including electricity—on their planets and send them back to Earth. That’s right! Colonists could harvest the sun’s energy and send it to Earth in the form of electricity. Being able to farm renewable power will release humans from being too reliant on gas, coal, and nuclear energy.

Colonizing Mars goes beyond the practical rewards. It would be an important moment in the history of humanity, ranking up there with the discovery of “The New World” and the moon landing. It would require a lot of resources, money, and collaboration. Multiple countries could learn how to better our species. Some of the products we use every day were invented by NASA, including baby formula, water filtration, and cell phone cameras. The amount of technological innovation required for such an effort could benefit the world as well.

How will we do it?

NASA currently has plans to send a human mission to Mars by 2033. There are five phases, or steps.

Phase 0: has been going on since the main building of the International Space Station began in 1998. The experiments and collaboration with private space companies (such as SpaceX) are a major component of this phase.

Phase 1: requires that we build bigger and better spacecraft. This will transport the crew with all of the supplies it needs to survive.

Phase 2: Build a Deep Space Transport ​(DST)​ system. The ​DST​ system calls for creating vehicles that astronauts can live in during the two-year trip to Mars, as well as supply lines. This is a practice step of sorts. The system will be tested using missions to the moon.

Phase 3: Expand the ​DST​ system to Mars

Phase 4: Take a manned trip to the red planet.

If this sounds expensive, that’s because it is. Mars One, a private space exploration company whose mission is to establish a permanent human colony on Mars, estimates that it will cost $6 billion. SpaceX estimates that it will cost $10 billion per person. NASA’s costs are much higher. It thinks that such a mission would ultimately cost $1 trillion. Currently, NASA receives 0.5% of the national budget, or $22.629 billion, for all of its operations.

But don’t worry! Although the cost seems extremely high, Elon Musk, who owns SpaceX, thinks that the cost of moving to the moon will eventually be much less. Once everything is in place, the colonies are established, and deep space travel is normalized, someone could move to Mars for as little as $100,000.

“It gets to the point where almost anyone, if they saved up and this was their goal, could buy a ticket and move to Mars — and given that Mars would have a labor shortage for a long time, jobs would not be in short supply,” he said.

What is a central idea of "We're Going to Mars!"?

Living on Mars will be less expensive than living on Earth.

NASA has a strategy underway to colonize Mars.

NASA has started providing public transportation to space.

Private companies have begun setting up colonies in space.
Question 2
Part B

Which detail best supports the answer to Part A?

“Phase 1: requires that we build bigger and better spacecraft. This will transport the crew with all of the supplies it needs to survive.”

“NASA's costs are much higher. It thinks that such a mission would ultimately cost $1 trillion.”

“NASA currently has plans to send a human mission to Mars by 2033. There are five phases, or steps.”

“Once everything is in place, the colonies are established, and deep space travel is normalized, someone could move to Mars for as little as $100,000.”