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NASA Wants Astronauts to Use Mars's Natural Resources to Survive

Let's all mine Mars.
Image: ESA

Humans have thoroughly wrecked Earth's environment, now it's time to move on to using the natural resources of another planet.

Fresh off the discovery of flowing, liquid water on Mars, NASA said Wednesday it wants ideas for how to best exploit the natural resources of the Red Planet for human survival.

"In situ resource utilization is key to our exploration of the universe," Robert Mueller, senior technologist at NASA's Swamp Works, which is a laboratory working on the specifics of deep space travel, said in a statement. "We must find ways to make what we need once we are at our destination."

Mueller said Martian soil could be fashioned into building blocks to create shelters, landing pads, and perhaps roads. NASA plans on giving away modest $10,000 and $2,500 prizes to people who can come up with potentially viable ideas for Mars resource use.

The idea of mining Mars for resources—both for the use of humans there and perhaps for use on Earth—is nothing new. SpaceX notoriously wants to use a methane- and oxygen-powered rocket to get to Mars, because it's theoretically simple to synthesize methane on Mars using its existing resources.

Presumably, none of the ideas NASA is looking for would seriously change the Martian environment in the short term. But that's probably what North America's first European settlers probably said, too.

In all seriousness, as Mueller said, in situ resource utilization is absolutely vital if humans are going to become a multi-planetary species. Mars is fully of ice, minerals, and all the chemicals needed to make plastics. The fewer things we need to take on a journey to Mars, the more likely long-term colonies could potentially thrive there.