Can Space Colonization Guarantee Human Survival?
Many people have argued that as long as humans live only on Earth, we have “all our eggs in one basket”. They suggest we need space colonies to insure the future of the species. There are many current and potential threats to the human race. However, considering the human source of many of the threats and the timescales involved, I’m not sure that space colonization should be the top priority in preempting those threats. Timescales To consider how well space colonization is likely to solve our problems we need to ask what the timescales of sustainable, independent space colonies are. If, after disaster strikes Earth, Earth is still able to supplement the needs of space colonies, then those space colonies aren’t necessarily essential to continuing the human race. We have to ask when spaces colonies would be functioning without need of any assistance from Earth. Truly independent space colonies must not simply provide bare nutrition, air, heat, and habitat repair for 100 years. They shou
