Comment by adrian_b
17 hours ago
It would be very expensive, but not impossible, to make big enough spaceships in which to have suitable life conditions for humans in our current form, including gravity at the terrestrial level and radiation shielding.
Living inside huge spaceships, orbiting around some planets, where everything needed for a permanent stay should be provided, is a far more plausible way for humans to expand in the Solar System, than living on the surface of any planet or satellite of the Solar System.
The experiments with mice on the ISS have indicated that, at least for them, the gravity level at which no health problems appear is around two thirds of the Earth level, and at least one third of the Earth level is needed to avoid very serious health problems. Humans might support a somewhat lower gravity level than mice, but it is not likely that the difference is great.
Except perhaps when floating in the atmosphere of Venus, there is no place in the Solar System where the gravity is suitable for long term living. On the other hand, in a rotating spaceship the gravity level can be adjusted to whatever value is desired. One could build a rotating part also in an underground base, but unlike in a spaceship that would consume energy continuously.
> very expensive
That is exactly my point, Human life supporting environments are great for tourism or experimental research missions where return on investment is not a critical factor.
Sending humans is not economically scalable option and cannot be ever cheaper than small carbon (or silicon based) based bots/organisms are the ones who can actually spread some version of life in the solar system and beyond.
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This is same dynamics in fighter plane or submarines at smaller scale. We will get an interregnum period where the drones would be pitched that multiply/augment the ability of the pilot as in some proposed 6th generation designs.
This only serves mostly to get to the current crop of pilots and leadership to sign-up on a new program, 7th generation will be purely only drones. The full switch will happen when some rival Air Force will develop/skip to drone only 7th gen and the U.S. would have to catch up if not lead it. Submarines are also in the similar trajectory.