Xref: utzoo sci.bio:4533 sci.space:28057 Path: utzoo!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!swrinde!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!n8emr!bluemoon!bmb From: bmb@bluemoon.uucp (Bryan Bankhead) Newsgroups: sci.bio,sci.space Subject: Re: Why bother? (was Re: Terraforming, sun shield) Message-ID: Date: 3 Mar 91 20:45:00 GMT References: <6956@harrier.ukc.ac.uk> Sender: bbs@bluemoon.uucp (BBS Login) Organization: Blue Moon BBS ((614) 868-9980/2/4) Lines: 16 sss3@ukc.ac.uk (S.S.Sturrock) writes: > Nice idea this terraforming, why can't we make lots of new worlds for people > to live on, then we don't have to worry about contraception, or the populatio > problem, excellent plan guys. We make a mega mess of this world, get all > green and caring but still we don't consider the one all important green issu > our propensity to overpopulate. OK, so it's a tangential argument but what t > hell, I'm a tangential sort of chap :-) Terraforming is my least favorite option for creating living space for humanity.. The energy cost estimated for the terraforming of mars, the most earthlike planet in the solar system is in the area of 10^23 watts, or about 100 million times as much as the entire energy consumption fo humanity for all purposes. and that is just to convert the atmosphere! There will still be an immense effor in setting up a self sustaing ecology. for such a cost we could create billions of O'Neill colonies a lot faster.