People have been discussing the idea of colonizing Mars for a long time and are already taking steps in this direction – after all, the Red Planet is relatively close to Earth and even looks a little like it. With Mercury, the situation is different. “High-tech” tells how real it is to live on this planet and why it is needed.
The very idea of living and working on Mercury may seem like a surreal science fiction story. However, this idea is based on scientific facts – with the right technologies and solutions for life, humans can populate this planet. The correct strategy will even allow its residents to support themselves on their own.
For example, the local economy can be built around “adventure tourism” as well as mining and energy. Mercury is rich in ore and precious metals, and its proximity to the Sun provides it with a huge amount of stellar energy.
However, before building an economy, you need to understand how to live in this hostile environment. Here’s what can get in the way.
Extreme temperatures
Despite the fact that Mercury is closest to the Sun, it is not the hottest planet (this title belongs to Venus). The thing is that it almost never had and does not have an atmosphere, with the exception of a thin exosphere. It consists of atomic oxygen and hydrogen, sodium, magnesium, helium and other minerals in tiny amounts. However, the pressure on the planet does not exceed 5 x 10-15 bar (0.005 picobar). For comparison, this is one trillionth of the Earth’s atmospheric pressure (altitude – sea level). Because of this, Mercury does not retain heat from the Sun and suffers from sudden changes in temperature. What does it look like?
The side facing the Sun heats up to 427 ° C, and the “night” side cools down to –173 ° C. However, because of the orbit, these day and night extremes last for months! By the way, about the orbit. She is one of the most eccentric in the solar system. Due to its elliptical shape, the distance to the star ranges from 46 million km at perihelion to 70 million km at aphelion.
Really long days
The proximity to the Sun results in a long orbital period for the planet. As a result, the year on Mercury passes very quickly. It lasts 88 Earth days – during this time the planet manages to go through one circle in its orbit around the Sun. Moreover, a day lasts 58 earth days.
Due to its proximity to the Sun, Mercury receives very intense radiation. This means that even if people figure out how to protect themselves from extreme temperatures, the effects of daylight on Mercury will be simply fatal. The settlers will have to constantly stay away from the Sun. On this score, scientists have several ideas.
How to survive on Mercury?
If people hope to someday live on Mercury, they will have to figure out how to escape the Sun. The nature of the planet’s structure and orbit gives future colonizers a chance.
• Life underground
Based on observations and data from the MErcury Surface, Space Environment, GEochemistry and Ranging (MESSENGER) probe, scientists realized that Mercury, like the Moon, has lava tubes. These are remnants of the planet’s geologically active past. Some of them are large enough to accommodate an entire city.
Inside them, you can maintain a stable, and, most importantly, the optimal temperature for a comfortable stay (22 ± 1 ° C). Also, lava tubes can protect settlers from radiation. Given the lack of atmosphere, this will be very helpful. By the way, underground, in hermetically sealed conditions, it is possible to create an artificial earth-like atmosphere with a mixture of nitrogen and oxygen in a ratio of 78: 22.
• Life in motion
Another option is to create mobile settlements that will constantly move west and keep on the border between day and night. Since Mercury’s slow rotation and fast orbit results in 176 days of continuous daylight on one side of the planet, settlements do not need to move quickly.
• Life in a crater
Alternatively, a settlement can be established in permanently shaded areas such as the crater-covered north pole of Mercury. There temperatures are low enough for water ice to exist. The largest craters – Prokofiev, Chesterton, Kandinsky and Tryggvadottir – are large, from 31 km to 112 km. This is enough for a small town and even a metropolis.
In addition, data obtained by the MESSENGER probe showed that craters in this area could contain between 110 billion and 1.1 trillion tons of water ice. It could be harvested to meet the water needs of the colonists, and solar panels located along the edge of the crater would provide a constant source of energy. By the way, sunlight can penetrate the craters with the help of mirrors, which means that agriculture is theoretically possible.
Using the concept of paraterraforming, which was described by British mathematician Richard Taylor in 1992, it is possible to create an airtight space inside the craters to create an artificial closed atmosphere.
So why master Mercury?
Mercury receives 6.5 times more solar energy than Earth. Using a group of solar satellites, it can be used not only to provide for the life of the colonists. Now engineers are studying space solar energy as a means to tackle climate change.
The constellation of satellites in orbit around Mercury can collect huge amounts of solar energy. It could then be directed into the Earth-Moon system and elsewhere using microwave lasers. Mercury can be seen as the “powerhouse” of the solar system.
Mercury is incredibly rich in precious metals and minerals. Like other rocky planets (Venus, Earth, and Mars), it is composed of silicate minerals and metals, divided into a silicate mantle and a crust surrounding a metal core (composed primarily of an iron-nickel alloy).
Based on the latest data, geologists have calculated that the crust and mantle are 35 km 600 km thick, respectively, while the diameter of the core is estimated at 4 148 km. This means that the central region of the planet is 85% of the planet’s size. The surface is rich in magnesium and sulfur, and there are also large caches of minerals and precious metals that have been brought to the planet by asteroids and meteors throughout the history of the solar system.
Another plus of Mercury is its gravity. Despite the fact that it is the smallest planet in the solar system and even smaller than some moons (for example, the moon of Jupiter Ganymede), the gravity on its surface is close to that of Martian – 38% of the earth. Decades of research (in particular, the Twins Study) have shown that microgravity is bad for the human body – it loses muscle mass and bone density, vision, blood circulation, cardiovascular system and organ function are impaired. Less gravity would also make it relatively cheap to launch payloads or spacecraft from the surface.
Mercury is one of the candidates for colonization within the solar system along with Mars, Venus, Moon, Ceres, Europa, Ganymede, Callisto, Titan. Perhaps future generations can call it their home.
