+Frank B. Subscriber² Posted February 14, 2011 Subscriber² Share Posted February 14, 2011 Why infertility will stop humans colonising space Renowned astrophysicist Stephen Hawking once remarked that humankind would need to colonise space within the next century if it was to survive as a species. "It will be difficult enough to avoid disaster in the next 100 years, let alone the next thousand or million," he said somewhat pessimistically last year. "Our only chance of long-term survival is not to remain inward-looking on planet Earth, but to spread out into space." The prospect of long-term space travel has led scientists to consider, increasingly seriously, the following conundrum: if travelling to a new home might take thousands of years, would humans be able to successfully procreate along the way? The early indications from Nasa are not encouraging. Space, it seems, is simply not a good place to have sex. According to a review by three scientists looking into the feasibility of colonising Mars, astronauts would be well advised to avoid getting pregnant along the way because of the high levels of radiation that would bombard their bodies as they travelled through space. Without effective shielding on spaceships, high-energy proton particles would probably sterilise any female foetus conceived in deep space and could have a profound effect on male fertility. "The present shielding capabilities would probably preclude having a pregnancy transited to Mars," said radiation biophysicist Tore Straume of Nasa's Ames Research Center in an essay for the Journal of Cosmology. The DNA which guides the development of all the cells in the body is easily damaged by the kind of radiation that would assail astronauts as they journeyed through space. Studies on non-human primates have shown that exposure to ionising radiation kills egg cells in a female foetus during the second half of pregnancy. "One would have to be very protective of those cells during gestation, during pregnancy, to make sure that the female didn't become sterile so they could continue the colony," Dr Straume said. Radiation in space comes from numerous sources but the two types that have Nasa scientists most concerned are solar flares and galactic cosmic rays. Flares are the result of huge explosions in the Sun's atmosphere that catapult highly charged protons across space. The Earth's atmosphere and magnetic field absorbs much of this harmful radiation ? but in space astronauts are much more vulnerable. Galactic cosmic rays pose an even greater threat. They are made up of even heavier charged particles. Although Nasa's shields can protect astronauts against most flare radiation, it is unlikely they could do the same against cosmic rays. Until recently, sex had been a taboo subject for Nasa, which has a strict code of conduct stating that "relationships of trust" among astronauts are to be maintained at all times. Only once has a husband and wife been on the same mission ? Jan Davis and Mark Lee ? and they have remained tight-lipped over whether they joined the 62-mile high club. Source: independent.co.uk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teebor Posted February 14, 2011 Share Posted February 14, 2011 OMG!! Did anyone else read his quote in a voice that sounded like Stephen hawking in your head :D anyway, if we learned anything from Jurassic park its that life will find a way Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Xinok Subscriber² Posted February 14, 2011 Subscriber² Share Posted February 14, 2011 I think it would be easier to just move the entire Earth to a new star. To hell with spaceships. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Ferson Veteran Posted February 14, 2011 Veteran Share Posted February 14, 2011 Colonization of other planets seems less and less likely to feasibly happen with the more that I read about it. I never heard that quote from Stephen Hawking, but for all we know he could (hopefully) be proved wrong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skittlebrau Posted February 14, 2011 Share Posted February 14, 2011 Did anyone else read his quote in a voice that sounded like Stephen hawking in your head :D Guilty as charged. [<---- linky] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frylock86 Posted February 14, 2011 Share Posted February 14, 2011 Colonization of other planets seems less and less likely to feasibly happen with the more that I read about it. I never heard that quote from Stephen Hawking, but for all we know he could (hopefully) be proved wrong. It is possible. We just need the technology. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hum Posted February 14, 2011 Share Posted February 14, 2011 Space is already seeded with 'humans'. ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charisma Veteran Posted February 14, 2011 Veteran Share Posted February 14, 2011 Colonization of other planets seems less and less likely to feasibly happen with the more that I read about it. I never heard that quote from Stephen Hawking, but for all we know he could (hopefully) be proved wrong. Yeah, if I had to guess, I'd say Earth will purge itself again, with another global flood or plague or just some of the population dying out due to there not being enough resources to support everyone... it's a cycle that's been going on since the beginning of life. And it's not a bad thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Conjor Posted February 14, 2011 Share Posted February 14, 2011 Yeah, if I had to guess, I'd say Earth will purge itself again, with another global flood or plague or just some of the population dying out due to there not being enough resources to support everyone... it's a cycle that's been going on since the beginning of life. And it's not a bad thing. I heard that there were no respawn points in RL. If the GM comes through and wipes out the entire zone, how / where will we respawn? Also... what is the respawn timer? I don't want to wait that long to get back into the game... But seriously, a global flood, a la Noah, won't happen. A plague, possible, but there will always be those who survive it due to natural immunities and the like. All we need is a deflector shield to get rid of that nasty radiation.. then the bow chika wow wow can commence. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DukeEsquire Posted February 14, 2011 Share Posted February 14, 2011 All these roadblocks seem like they would be fixed with better shielding. Surely someone will think of something to block out the radiation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fish Posted February 14, 2011 Share Posted February 14, 2011 A tame black hole to bend spacetime, and simultaneously shield us from those nasty rays with it's immense magnetic field. There, job done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Xinok Subscriber² Posted February 14, 2011 Subscriber² Share Posted February 14, 2011 All these roadblocks seem like they would be fixed with better shielding. Surely someone will think of something to block out the radiation. Is that even technically possible without, say, building a spaceship made of lead? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hum Posted February 14, 2011 Share Posted February 14, 2011 Is that even technically possible without, say, building a spaceship made of lead? Yes indeed. With the proper electromagnetic shielding. ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frylock86 Posted February 14, 2011 Share Posted February 14, 2011 Space is already seeded with 'humans'. ;) They were taken by Ra ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Edrick Smith Posted February 14, 2011 Share Posted February 14, 2011 Although an interesting read it sure isn't a halt to human colonization. The rate of technological advances and science discovery is astonishing. I have no doubt in my lifetime (assuming we don't get nuked out of existence, killed off in some Bio-War, or impending doom from all these religion beliefs). We'll see the successful colonization of another planet with reproduction. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Growled Member Posted February 15, 2011 Member Share Posted February 15, 2011 Without effective shielding on spaceships, high-energy proton particles would probably sterilise any female foetus conceived in deep space and could have a profound effect on male fertility. I can see us solving this problem by the time colonization becomes a reality. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neoadorable Posted February 16, 2011 Share Posted February 16, 2011 shielding will not be a big deal, even now we can do it, save for weight problems and thus cost. once the space effort stops being so theoretical and gets going, technologies will come online that will make it affordable and second nature. in a hundred years radiation in deep space will be as a hurdle as cold temps are to commercial air travel on Earth. sure, a factor, but nothing to get worked up over. so no, this infertility issue will not be a factor at all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Memphis Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 shielding will not be a big deal, even now we can do it, save for weight problems and thus cost. once the space effort stops being so theoretical and gets going, technologies will come online that will make it affordable and second nature. in a hundred years radiation in deep space will be as a hurdle as cold temps are to commercial air travel on Earth. sure, a factor, but nothing to get worked up over. so no, this infertility issue will not be a factor at all. Did I not read an article about 6 months ago on this very forum about about the giant breakthrough in a working Ion Shield for space travel? Isn't this problem already for the most part solved? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carmatic Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 shielding will not be a big deal, even now we can do it, save for weight problems and thus cost. once the space effort stops being so theoretical and gets going, technologies will come online that will make it affordable and second nature. in a hundred years radiation in deep space will be as a hurdle as cold temps are to commercial air travel on Earth. sure, a factor, but nothing to get worked up over. so no, this infertility issue will not be a factor at all. i was thinking that the weight issue wouldnt matter if they started mining from things which are already in space, like asteroids and stuff then i realized, thats sci fi.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HawkMan Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 i was thinking that the weight issue wouldnt matter if they started mining from things which are already in space, like asteroids and stuff then i realized, thats sci fi.... once commercial rockets and reusable specaeships become a bigger reality in the next 10 years. expect the big mining congolmerates to look into asteroid mining. they already have the plans, and the equipments is easy. and the materials are there in abundance and easier to mine than down here. and you just need cheap unmanned tugs to go grab a roid and tug it back to earth orbit. then the matierals can be dropped in simple one time containers fabricated in space. the problem so far has been getting up there in the first place. which with everything happening on that front won't be a problem for long. and once the mining happens, work on a proper orbital elevator wouldn't be far behind either with technology 20 years into the future and an abuyndance of raw materials. so it's not that much of science fiction. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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