How To Terraform A Planet In 10 Easy Steps6

By Eric Tozzi, Nov 17, 2010 in Alpha Planet, Pop Culture

How To Terraform A Planet In 10 Easy Steps

The idea of terraforming another planet so that it changes from hostile wasteland to human-friendly environment is one of those very arcane ideas whose only testing ground thus far has been that of science fiction films, television and stories. It is almost always a need that arises in the wake of mankind destroying its blue marble and thus seeking a new world to inhabit. Of course, we have also seen the reverse of this scenario in films like Wall-e, and in shows like Alpha Planet, where in the year 2256, mankind returns to a previously devastated earth in the hopes of reestablishing human habitability when resources in space grow scarce.

I’ll never forget the scene in James Cameron’s science fiction masterpiece, Aliens, in which an embattled Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) learns that the colony on a desolate planetoid, LV-426 (the very same planet she and her crew landed on previously and encountered the vicious Alien creature), is referred to as a “shake-and-bake” colony. Its terraforming, and they make it sound so simple. Planet engineers arrive and set up atmospheric processing plants – massive chimney-like machines that belch some kind of mixture into the air, which gradually changes the planet into a habitable environment for human beings.

The Arnold Schwarzenegger/Paul Verhoeven Mars blockbuster, Total Recall, tackled the prospect of terraforming from a very different angle. An alien race had done all the heavy lifting by engineering a massive underground swamp cooler of sorts. The machine, activated by placing a very large alien hand over its start button, would completely change the planet’s atmosphere to a human-friendly state. Why the aliens didn’t just push the button themselves a long time ago, I’ll never understand.

Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan made it even easier to completely terraform a planet: introduce a “Genesis Device” (essentially a life-making bomb) into a planetoid devoid of any life from the comfort and safe distance of your starship and, as Dr. Leonard McCoy put it so aptly, “…we’ll do it for you in six minutes!”

I have to be honest…terraforming is not easy. In fact, it’s impossible at this point. In the year 2256, it will probably still be impossible. To create a truly habitable environment for human beings, is to consider many factors beyond having breathable air: gravity, temperature, atmospheric pressure, soil and rock chemistry, orbit, magnetic fields, and solar radiation are just a few items that would have to be in some kind of harmony with our new, breathable air. And for starters, there’s that pesky issue of getting all the manpower and materials to another planet to begin the process.

In fact, if you want to get a real glimpse of what awaits those who plan on boldly going on very long trips into space, I suggest picking up a copy of “The Hazards of Space Travel: A Tourists Guide” by physicist Neil Comins. If you ever want to ruin the fantasy of what it’s going to be like out there for extended periods of time (of which terraformers would most certainly have to endure), this book will help you re-appreciate gravity, blue skies, green grass, friends, family and the microwave oven.

But let’s take a simpler path here and dive headlong into suspension of disbelief and learn 10 easy steps to terraforming a planet. And for the sake of this list, let’s go with the idea of an atmospheric processing machine of some kind to do the job.

Alpha Planet – Prodigal Sons

1. Pick a planet, any planet

Well, not really. Let’s eliminate the gas giants Jupiter, Saturn, Neptune and Uranus, not only for their size, gravity, radiation and violent atmospheres, but also their distance from the sun. Even with a breathable environment, sunlight is going to be critical for mankind’s long-term survival. Venus proves to be another one of those bad choices. With atmospheric pressure nearly 100 times that of earth you’d be, well…crushed. Oh and it’s about 700 degrees Fahrenheit.

Let’s start with a planet that is a bit more earth-like, just to give us a leg up. Mars! Yes, the atmosphere is mostly carbon dioxide and very thin. Yes, it’s a bit chilly up there (average equatorial temperatures hover around -180 degrees), but overall, Mars is actually the most earth-like planet in our solar system. We know from our robotic rovers, Spirit and Opportunity, that liquid water was present over a vast part of Mars. Ice is currently present in the northern latitudes as well as just below the surface further south. All we have to do now is build up the atmosphere and heat the place up!

2. Schedule your missions

A schedule is going to be important since this whole operation is going to take a number of flights to set up. Unless aliens left some kind of turnkey atmosphere machine under ground, (which they didn’t), this will be a much more gradual process. So you’ll need people and hardware to make it all happen. How many flights back and forth from the red planet will it take? Many, as you will need to transport materials from Earth, assemble them on the surface of Mars, then return to Earth for more.

3. Pick a crew

This is where you can’t just pull any Joe six-pack off the street or enlist some hot celebrity for PR purposes. You’re going to want a crew that can handle all of the pressures of extended space travel and know how to set up the necessary equipment once they reach the surface of the planet. Perhaps the intrepid crew from “Alpha Planet” would step up to the plate?

4. Launch

You gotta get off the ground before anything gets done on Mars, so pack all your crew and hardware in an Atlas 5 HLV rocket and hit the launch button! The bigger the rocket, the more mass it can lift. HLV stands for Heavy Lift Vehicle. Trust me; with a terraforming machine, additional hardware and crew, you’re going to need it!

5. Cruise to Mars

Now you’re in cruise phase – which means you better have your iPod, iPad or some kind of in-flight entertainment for what will be a month-long journey. That’s assuming that in 2256 we can achieve much greater speeds in space than we can now. An ion propulsion drive, currently in use on the JPL Dawn spacecraft, could provide that. Ion propulsion uses a steady stream of ions to very gradually create more and more thrust over time. With current conventional fuel and propulsion, if you want to reach Mars, it’s going to take you 6 to 9 months!

Alpha Planet – News Prelude

6. Land safely

Land safely. This is far more difficult and dangerous than it sounds. This is also known as Entry, Descent and Landing. Its reverse rocket engineering: decelerate from tens-of-thousands of miles per hour to a nice soft landing at about 5 mph, and do it all in a couple of minutes. No problem, there’s an iPhone app for that whole process, right? At least there should be by 2256.

7. Set up your artificial habitats and terraforming machine

Set up your artificial habitats and terraforming machine. Just make sure to read the instructions and of course send in the warranty card. Establishing a safe and artificial habitat is the only way this is going to work since you’ll be spending a lot of time on the Martian surface. I mean, a lot of time.

8. Press the ON button!

The planet ain’t going to terraform itself, so flip the switch already! Once you fire up the machine, you’ll have to let the process happen.

9. Monitor the process

This now becomes your desk job on Mars as you watch and wait for the atmosphere to change. Watching paint dry will seem like NASCAR compared to this, but think about how much fun you’ll have outside when it’s all done! So sit back, read some good books, and don’t forget to punch out when the graveyard shift shows up.

10. Enjoy the planet!

Flash-forward to the day your tolerances are in check, and you can, at last, go outside without a helmet and breath in the new fresh air. You’re free to go for a walk, a jog, or an expedition to find that elusive evidence of an ancient Martian race. Go rappelling into some pit craters! Or perhaps this would be a great opportunity to go and collect all of our previous spacecraft and rovers that have been resting in the Martian sands for so long!

Alpha Planet – Diversilobum

Alpha Planet – When On Earth

Watch more episodes of the science fiction series Alpha Planet

Eric Tozzi is an LA-based director, editor and producer working in the independent film, web series and documentary fields. Visual effects and compositing is also becoming a regular part of his work in independent film. As a director, Eric created one of the very first dramatic web series, “The Dirty Bomb Diaries” which was released in early 2007 before most people knew what a web series was. Eric currently works at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory for the Mars Public Engagement office, producing and editing documentary content that chronicles past, present and future Mars Exploration Missions.