Mars One Colonization Plan

Mechanical Engineer Bas Lansdorp has started Mars One, a company that will send humans to the red planet in a bid to colonize it. The critics are not quite sure that the vague plan that Mars One has for setting up an establishment are really going to help in any way till technology catches up with what needs to be accomplished.

The four stage plan currently includes launching communication satellites which will allow the colonists to keep in touch with Earth. This includes one in a stationary orbit around Mars and another in orbit around the Sun. This part can actually be accomplished with ease. The second stage is to deliver a rover to scout for the best property to set up the colony on. Considering the success of Curiosity has been traveling just five miles in the last one year, this is going to take a long time with current tech rovers.

The third stage is to set up the habitation pod. This includes sending cargo  and a second rover that will be able to pull the cargo into the location selected for the colony. Not only is it extremely difficult for cargo missions to deliver their loads in close proximity, the kind of power that the transportation rover will need is not yet available.

The final stage of this science project is to bring in the human beings who will physically inhabit the colony. This is of course the most improbable stage as of now. It will be entertaining to see just how well this group of armchair enthusiasts deals with getting out into space.