Why Colonize Mars?
In fact, it is Mars’ low gravity which makes it so attractive in the first place. Really, what makes Mars attractive is not so much that its escape velocity is low as it is that Earth’s escape velocity is so high. On earth, we live at the bottom of a voracious gravity well. Earth’s escape velocity is 11.2 km/s, whereas Mars’ is only 5 km/s. However, the 11.2 km/s of earth puts it very close to the limits of our current technology to actually break free. To achieve this velocity, it takes upwards of 99% of the final payload mass in fuel, using chemical propulsion like LOX/LH2. This high cost also forces us to use expensive multi-stage launch vehicles which are close to impossible to re-use. On Mars, however, the fuel required to reach escape velocity goes way down, to around 50% of the final payload mass, and that is a huge economic advantage. Although the cost of building a colony on Mars would be literally astronomical, the benefit would be just as great. The cost of lifting heavy mat
