Theory-ISS is a lifeboat for the survival of the human species

I remember watching the high altitude parachutist and it got me thinking that maybe the International Space Station is not officially about research but a modern version of a survival bunker.

Since the idea of inhabiting other worlds is still far off, the government wanted a way to ensure the survival of the human race in case of total global annihilation, thus the creation of the space station.

IF our race were entirely wiped out, the astronauts would return to earth after a matter of time by simply exiting the station in a pressure suit with a rocket pack , maybe even in combination with the station itself slowing using rockets, therefore losing its orbit.

The astronauts slow enough to reenter the atmosphere without friction, then deploy their parachutes. They all do this in a timed unison, so that they all land within a few miles of each other. They also have beacons so they can locate one another after returning to earth to rebuild society.

C & C?

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To ensure the survival of the human species in an end world situation, you need to save 144,000+ people. Any less people and "inbreeding" would effect the genetic stability(more deffects) of our race.

With number of people who can be housed on the ISS and the current makeup of the crew of board, mostly men, currently I can not see the ISS as being a lifeboat for the survival.

SKUNK2 does raise an excellent point that to re-establish the human race would require more than just a few 10s or 100s of people.

Longer term and with the whole planet working together, I can see merit in your theory.

I would question your method of entry back to the planet. I think the highest drop is around a 100,000 feet and still within the atomsphere.

The ISS is in earth near orbit.

Well, I have heard of plans to colonize the moon. Perhaps some of the "missing" people have been abducted by our government and sent to the moon to live in some biospheric bubble. I don't know.

However, I'm not sure that complete annihilation of humanity will ever happen outside of the imaginations of the human race. If it does, I don't think it'll happen in the nect 100 million years or so.

Originally posted by SKUNK2
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To ensure the survival of the human species in an end world situation, you need to save 144,000+ people. Any less people and "inbreeding" would effect the genetic stability(more deffects) of our race.

I would respectfully disagree. Even if you do not believe in something like a first man and woman from a religious perspective, from an evolutionary perspective it did not require 144,000 beings as a beginning to all the diversity we have now - it only required a form of male and female (2).

I am curious why you feel it must require at least 144,000? You do know that has religious connotations?

Originally posted by Freedom ERP
I would question your method of entry back to the planet. I think the highest drop is around a 100,000 feet and still within the atomsphere.

The ISS is in earth near orbit.

Currently a reusable space craft simply insulates itself from heat due to friction because it would not be feasible to carry enough fuel for a burn long enough to slow it down quickly - because of the mass of the spacecraft, but it probably would not require as much fuel to slow the mass of a human being equipped with a rocket pack enough to slow them to the point where re entry heat is not an issue. Even the SR71 goes fast enough to generate a lot of heat, so you would have to slow below that threshold.

Then once you reached an altitude where there is sufficient pressure a parachute would deploy slowing you even further.

The trick would be to expend the energy quickly enough to slow yourself before hitting the atmosphere. I think the ISS has the necessary equipment and supplies on board to do this.