2028, Landing
Five starships land on Mars, marking the beginnings of the Mars colony.
All of the martian rovers sent by different countries before this day.
Watch as the five uncrewed starships land and deliver life support systems,
these pioneering starships pave the way for humans to land on Mars in two years time, for fishes to be grown in nine years, and for the first baby to be born on the red planet in 15 years time.
27 April 2028, Location: Erebus Montes
The five starships land at Erebus Montes.
The cargo ships are delivering essential life support systems.
These are made up of solar panels backup fuel, oxygen, water, dried food,
waste management systems, spacesuits, medical supplies and the first habitation pods.
There are also tools and equipment for experiments.
One of the starships is carrying Mars’s new starlink communications network, and deploys it in orbit before landing to deliver life-support cargo. Only four satellites are needed to create the martian starlink, as the Mars base will be concentrated to one area. There are also seven football fields worth of solar panels on the cargo list.
These are used to power the future base and fuel production solar panels on Mars are only 43% as efficient as they are on earth.
Rovers as well as robotic dogs by Boston Dynamics which SpaceX uses to inspect rockets on earth are deployed from the starships to the martian surface. Work begins on setting up the Mars base, the rovers and robots deploy the solar arrays, prep work begins for fuel production experiments, rovers begin drilling for icy water deposits. The saboteer process is used to take the CO² from the martian atmosphere and hydrogen from mining martian icy water, and then uses heat and pressure to turn it into water oxygen and methane fuel. Multi-use rovers begin flattening and melting the martian regolith the loose soil to prepare a large flat landing pad it reduces the kick-up of dirt and rocks, increasing the safety for the next landings. The population on Mars is made up entirely of robots two years and two months have passed since the first landings of the five cargo starships and the new launch window opens as earth and Mars are close together again.
20 June 2031, Day 1
Two starships carrying a total of 30 astronauts land on Mars, 10 additional cargo ships accompany them carrying an oversupply of life support. These first astronaut settlers are scientists, engineers, medical specialists and military personnel with scientific backgrounds. They all have to stay on Mars for the full two years and two months.
This is not a short-term visit. It is a mission to make life sustainable and multi-planetary. During the first week on Mars, the astronauts are suffering from the effects of low gravity after the seven month journey and have weaker muscles. The first week is used to acclimate to the gravity of the red planet and celebrate surviving the journey. The new settlers live in their starships that they landed in the crew begins to adapt to their new surroundings.
Life on Mars is harsh. The average temperature outside is -63°C or -81°F with a maximum of 20°C (68°F) in the summer at the equator. Wind storms are common on Mars they lift rust-colored dust into the atmosphere that can cover the entire planet. Mars also experiences quakes orbiters that are monitoring the climate on Mars act as weather satellites warning astronauts of incoming dust storms and changes in the weather.
The two-year-long work schedule begins. Days on the red planet are a little over 24 hours. The workday of unpacking and carrying heavy objects is made easier as the gravity on Mars is only 38% of that on earth. Once the life support systems have been unpacked and deployed, the next priority is testing and starting production of cryomethane fuel. The fuel is needed for the return trip to earth. A small crew of astronauts begin conducting experiments that test turning the martian soil into a 3D printing material. The green project also gets underway to start growing plants indoors. Settlers begin cultivating the martian soil.
NASA has packed designer plants that have been genetically engineered to grow on Mars and testing begins on the cyanobacteria that was transported from earth. This organism is used to produce ammonia fertilizer from the nitrogen in the martian atmosphere. Crops such as rye, radishes, tomatoes, beans, carrots and potatoes are grown, and the astronauts waste is recycled as fertilizer for the plants. Soon the Mars base will have a delivery of fishes.
On earth, SpaceX now has factories that are producing two starships per week. Each one costing five million dollars to build, 104 starships are built per year and 216 starships are ready for each launch window. Earth and Mars orbit around the sun at different speeds, so there is only a launch window every two years and two months when earth and Mars are at their closest. During each launch window year there are only a few days as low as 12 to launch, and four each day the launch window ranges from only 30 minutes to 2 hours, so a combination of cargo and crude starships are built waiting ready to be launched when the window opens.
Back on Mars, one starship launches heading back to earth, carrying on board the entire 30-person crew who have lived on the red planet for over two years.
11 July 2033, Day 752
With the landing of the second group of settlers, humans now surpass robots as the majority population. The first architect arrives along with four privately paying individuals who are paying 50 million dollars each. The rest of the crew are scientists, engineers and botanist farmers. The first set of small permanent greenhouse domes are constructed, adding to the number of plants being grown on Mars.
The settlers eat the first martian salad. A small portion of the food on the planet now comes from locally grown produce. This slowly reduces the amount of food that needs to be transported from earth on future missions.
SpaceX begins construction of the Depot X. The first permanent dedicated fueling station on Mars, and work begins on the first 3D printed habitat. The AI space factory 3D printer uses a mixture of martian soil and lab-grown plants which act as the glue, the polymer that holds the material together. The 3D printed outer shell of the new habitat provides protection from radiation while an inflatable inner shell is added for extra safety. Parts are deconstructed from one of the starships to create the communications and life support systems for the new 3D printed habitat.
18 August 2035, Day 1520
As more sophisticated 3D printing robots arrive, larger hydroponic crop facilities are built, generating the majority of the food for the martian settlers. Kimball musk even has a team working on Mars with their own vertical farm. The settlers begin testing underground digging for habitat purposes, data is sent back to the boring company on earth.
24 September 2037, Day 2288
Space agencies from all around the world are now sending their own equipment and scientists to Mars base alpha. The domain name amazon.Mars is registered by Jeff Bezos. Blue Origin plans to open for delivery to Mars for space agencies first and then later for private clients. The new starship crew have transported fishes from earth to create an aquaponic greenhouse as there is now enough water being made on Mars. The first funeral is held, the settler is cremated and spread across the martian landscape.
Back at earth a fleet of starships full of fuel cargo and passengers is waiting in low earth orbit. When the launch window opens, they fly as a fleet to Mars the spacecrafts are able to support and dock with each other if needed during the seven month journey.
17 November 2039, Day 3072
The year 2035, this year will be known as the great crossing earth and Mars are closer than usual this is known as a perihelic opposition the journey is shortened from seven months to five. Hundreds of settlers now land on the red planet, autonomous industrial scale 3D printers are now used to grow the base. The international habitat expands, and becomes a town-sized settlement of interconnected domes. The construction of the first martian hospital begins and a growing number of people decide to remain on Mars as more facilities are built.
10 February 2042, Day 3888
The first people with the intention of becoming permanent residents arrive on Mars. The colony crosses the 1,000 person mark. There is even a small scale TV show that is made on the red planet. The first martian marriage is watched across earth and Mars while exploration missions discover cave systems suitable for the development of protected underground habitats.
20 April 2044, Day 4688
The Boring Company tunnel digger lands on Mars, and begins testing digging underground tunnels for shielded passageways, and for underground habitat construction. This marks the beginning of Elon Musk’s Boring Mars Company. Robotic bases are now present at different locations, further away from the main base. They act as mining outposts and nation states begin constructing smaller habitats away from the base. They become embassies on Mars and architectural design moves habitats from purely functional constructions to expressive symbols of national pride. The first person is born on Mars, scientists study the health of the mother and baby closely.
19 June 2046, Day 5478
A large number of the new arrivals are now commercially paying two-year stay customers. All travelers are still required to contribute in growing the Mars society. With over 7,000 people now on Mars, the first martian political system is created. Local policies are needed to help govern the residents of Mars and keep pushing the mission of being self-sustaining as a matter of survival for the colony. The first restaurant opens on Mars serving bio-printed food including meat.
17 August 2050, Day 6998
The first bio-printer arrives, it is used at the hospital to test the printing of human parts.
A dedicated maternity ward is opened at the hospital to deal with the increase of births from the martian residents. The first parts of a nuclear fusion power plant begins construction, reducing the need for additional solar panels that are sent with each mission from earth.
16 October 2050, Day 7058
2046, the year of the martian explorers. The first person climbs olympus mons. It is two and a half times taller than mount everest, making it the tallest mountain and volcano in the solar system. The nine and a half month journey tests the limits of the new flexible spacesuits.
The first mrna manufacturing facility is operational, allowing the people of Mars to be vaccinated for when they return to earth. Schools are now being built as workers begin to move their families to Mars.
14 December 2052, Day 7848
Blue Origin’s first fully autonomous orbiting manufacturing station arrives in Mars orbit. The space station processes asteroids for rare materials. It is done in space so that the Mars atmosphere is not polluted. Manufactured goods are then sent down to the martian surface.
Elon Musk opens the first Tesla Gigafactory on Mars. Here they recycle solar panel batteries and assemble open and enclosed electric transporters, and also maintain ATVs and other SpaceX transport vehicles.
12 February 2055, Day 8638
The year 2051 is known as the second great crossing. The close orbits of earth and Mars allows for another mass movement of people and equipment. Tens of thousands of people land on the red planet. Government officials from different earth nations make the crossing. Mining companies send management teams and exploration geologists to the planet and establish small company habitats. AI robotics and a productive human workforce now makes Mars fully self-sufficient for all essential goods. The colony produces all of its own power, breathable air, water, food and fuel.
If resupply missions from earth were to stop, the Mars colony would survive and grow, but in a primitive way as there is still a need for advanced electronics from earth to keep the colony developing as an advanced civilization.
2 April 2058, Day 9783
To mark the 10,000 days humans have settled on Mars, the first Mars-born human visits earth. The traveler is assisted by a robotic suit controlled by a neuralink brain chip that helps support them in the heavy earth gravity.
On Mars grasslands and woody plants are thriving in vast enclosed greenhouse domes built over melted ice lakes near the equator. They are slowly adding oxygen to the martian atmosphere. The first strands of grass are found growing wild on the martian surface escaped seedlings from the greenhouses are attempting to survive on the surface of Mars.
