Exterminas said:
What exactly would be the benefit of colonizing mars ?
kinda weirdly hard to place a value on a inhabitable planet isn't it ?...but i'm sure we could manage to do so eventually
i'm also sure many of those who become Martians will probably think it's a lovely planet.
they'll probably have something like Marstube montage videos set to Hoppipolla.
the key value to us left on Earth is probably in terms of trade...each new colony would increase the amounts of economic activity between them and Earth would probably enjoy a gilded position as the progenitor.
...and ofc it greatly increases the long term survival chances of our species.
the first one probably makes the biggest difference in that respect.
when we "do" one...we kind of learn most of what we need to know to live, if not spread out amongst the stars, at least spread out across this solar system.
after that it's just a case of building a better engine...