Biological hurdles

Why journeys to Mars are in danger of failing

There are still many hurdles to overcome on the way to Mars, and they are not only of a technical or logistical nature, but also biological.

(Bild: Krone KREATIV/dottedyeti – stock.adobe.com (KI-generiert))

With the first controlled landing of his "Starship", SpaceX boss Elon Musk has taken a decisive step towards his dream of sending a manned mission to Mars by the end of the decade. However, there is still one crucial hurdle to overcome: human biology.

With an average distance of around 225 million kilometers, Mars is one of Earth's closest habitable neighbors, according to SpaceX. The planet is "half as far from the sun as Earth, so it still gets plenty of sunlight. It's a little cold, but we can warm it up. Its atmosphere is mostly CO2 with some nitrogen and argon and some other trace elements, which means we can grow plants on Mars by compressing the atmosphere. Gravity on Mars is about 38 percent of gravity on Earth, so you can lift heavy objects and jump around. What's more, the day is amazingly close to Earth's," the space company explains on its website.

SpaceX's "Starship" recently made its first controlled landing on its fourth attempt.

(Bild: APA/AFP)

Many hurdles to overcome
In 2029 - previously there was talk of 2025 - SpaceX therefore wants to send the first manned mission on the approximately six-month journey to Mars. By 2050, one million people are to be transported to the Red Planet - at least that is the vision of company founder Elon Musk, who dreams of a "multi-planetary society". He can "imagine nothing more exciting than going out and being among the stars", enthuses the currently second richest person on earth with an estimated fortune of 195 billion US dollars.

However, there are still many hurdles to overcome on the way to Mars, and they are not just technical or logistical, but also biological in nature.