SoylentNews is people
SoylentNews
Earth has been hit by objects in the past, with devastating effects. Scientists largely agree that it was an asteroid or comet impact that started the chain of events that wiped out the dinosaurs around 60 million years ago.
[...] impacts from objects in space are just one of several ways that humanity and most of life on Earth could suddenly disappear.
We are already observing that extinctions are happening now at an unprecedented rate. In 2014 it was estimated that the extinction rate is now 1,000 times greater than before humans were on the Earth. The estimated number of extinctions ranges from 200 to 2,000 species per year.
From all of this very worrying data, it would not be a stretch to say that we are currently within a doomsday scenario. Of course, the “day” is longer than 24 hours but may be instead in the order of a century or two.
So what can we do about this potential prospect of impending doom?
[...] But the threats we face are so unpredictable that we need to have a backup plan. We need to plan for the time after our doomsday and think about how a post-apocalyptic Earth may recover and humanity will flourish again.
As computer experts, you are familiar with backup plans. What should we do to backup human survival ?
(Score: 3, Interesting) by kaszz on Wednesday June 14 2017, @03:34AM
Perhaps a more realistic version: Mars underground [youtube.com] with Dr. Robert Zubrin.
Colonizing the Caves of Mars [youtube.com].. because the surface is quite hostile.
The problems that really remains:
* Radiation protection (may be managed using moon regolith)
* How low gravity affects the body (centrifuges can be a solution)
The rest of the issues seems already solved. Rocket launch prices may need to come down further. But it can be done right now for a price. A cheap alternative is a deep bunker. Hopefully only nerds sense the novelty and tries to experiment with human backup and thus eliminate by Darwin the chaff of narcissistic posers.
The real break through is likely to be a profitable business model where space activity finances itself with a surplus. A really good version with this won't need Earth economy or industry. Once a enough complete industry is established on low gravity planets (bodies) or in orbit that can re-supply itself using raw materials solely from space it's a home run and Earth money becomes irrelevant.