Terraforming Mars..........How?

I thought it was deemed feasible to release oxygen quickly from the soil, as well as create an instant greenhouse effect utilizing many low-strength, low-residue nukes, scattered strategically across Mars.

This is just not a good idea. Mars has an ecosystem, whether we want to recognize it or not, and what we have done to nature so far shows all to tellingly we do not have a handle on her.

Well natures had it for a long time, i say its our turn. Shes not doing anything with it.

The key, as I see it, to terraforming Mars is in genetic manipulation of plant life in order for it to be able to survive on the planets surface, as it stands right now, and produce oxygen.

There are various lichens/mosses that live on this planet in extreme conditions that are probably very well suited for adaptation.

The idea of a planet sized magnetic shield is a difficult one, and not something I think is possible, however a localised shield might very well be - something akin to a large spinning electromagnet in the middle of what you could probably describe as a classic sci-fi style dome structure might provide enough to allow enough protection for a small colony.

So, pick an area. Seed it with lichen, leave it for a number of years to grow, then send in a robotic probe with the magnetic generator, start it working and then send a team in to construct your dome.

Repeat as necessary. Continue seeding externally. Start small, and eventually you'll get big.

It's a shame that such valuable pioneers like Zubrin are being held back by the non-disclosure of life on Mars.It means so many genius ideas wasted and the wrong approach to sending people there eventually. There are Mars people already there who we need to contact. The sooner the mental giants come around to that way of thinking,the sooner we can proceed in a purposeful and correct way with more adequate information and so much less guesswork using faulty assumptions. To me it's just plain common sense to learn about the people before we visit.They can tell us so much more than we could find out ANY OTHER WAY. Meanwhile SETI is lost in space when they should be totally fixated on Mars. Just try talking to the Mars people.They look like us.We probably have much in common. Do I have to show baby pics to get your attention?

Here's the BABY you want to TERRAFORM. Just in case you also only see rocks,and need to be shownwhat's really there. One of the "WHATEVER PEOPLE."

A magnetic field does not keep an atmosphere in place, gravity does. (Although it does help protect it from interacting with the solar winds which can cause some burnoff) A magnetic field protects the surface (and anything living on it) from the Sun's radiation. If a magnetic field was required, then Venus would be barren.

Mars has a few issues we would need to overcome. We need to change the composition of the atmosphere itself. Mars is around 95% CO2 / 3% nitrogen and less than 1% oxygen. Earth is around 78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen, and less than 1% CO2. We would have to thicken the atmosphere too. This would have a nice side effect of heating the planet too.

If it is one thing humans are good at, it is creating factories to release greenhouse gases. We purposely release tons of these gases into the atmosphere of Mars. First ones by space flight from Earth, hundreds others created on site by the first factories. Eventually these factories would focus on changing CO2 to O2, much as the plants do on Earth. Then we could introduce types of bacteria to assist.

This really would only (only..like it is a small quick task. Hundreds of years maybe?) leave us with a breathable atmosphere. That whole solar radiation thing might be a thorn in our side.

It isn't just Mars we could look at terraforming. Venus is a candidate too. Would take a whole different strategy, but since we are talking about some concepts...if a system could be created to slowly move Venus's atmosphere to Mars...

[edit on 17-3-2008 by Shadow_Lord]

Another thought...

We could just wait. Depending on what caused Mars to be in its current state, it might not be "dead". It could be slowly recovering.

I think if we have years and years of magnetic field data, that would tell a story. Right not the magnetic field of Mars if weak and broken apart. If it began to become a more uniform field then I think Mars would heal itself.

If it becomes more shattered and weak, then Mars is dying.