A May 7 shot of the Curiosity rover on a geological site known as the Greenheugh Pediment showed an interesting finding.
The photo shows something reminiscent of a door carved into the rocks.
To the great regret of all enthusiasts who are ready to look up at the sky and unleash their imagination, NASA’s space center explained the true significance of the object.
Scientists have pointed out how small the crack is: about 30 centimeters wide and 45 centimeters deep. According to them, this is a place where several linear cracks intersect.
However, the discovery has given rise to many conspiracy theories. What happened renewed the slightly forgotten interest of the “Earthlings” to visit the Red Planet and find out firsthand whether we are the first living organisms to walk on its rocks.
Some time ago, eccentric billionaire and founder of Space X’s private space program Elon Musk said that “everyone can save on a trip to Mars” because one day it will be an achievable destination.
He is “convinced” that moving to Mars “one day” will cost less than $ 500,000 and “maybe even” will fall below $ 100,000. The final price for the flight there, he said, will depend on “a lot of the volume” of passengers, the cost of relocation will be low enough for most people from advanced economies to sell their homes on Earth and move to Mars if they want. ”
Given that the average home price in the United States is about $ 223,900 (according to Zillow), the idea doesn’t sound too economically untenable.
“If moving Mars costs $ 100,000, then I think almost anyone can work and save and end up with $ 100,000 and be able to go to Mars if they want to,” Musk said.
It is unclear whether the richest man knows that the average income in the United States was just over $ 31,000 in 2019 or that nearly two-thirds of Americans live from paycheck to paycheck. The average per capita income worldwide is significantly lower, hovering around $ 10,000, the Independent reported.
“Mars will not be luxurious in the beginning,” added Musk. “It will be a dangerous and difficult job.”
Because of these comments, Musk was criticized by many critics, who skeptically said that most people in the United States could not afford such a trip because of the size of their salaries and it is not correct for the billionaire to say that the trip will be accessible to everyone.
In an interview with TED chief Chris Anderson, Elon reiterated that he aims to colonize Mars by building a self-sustaining city of a million people on the planet.
Musk said the quest to colonize Mars was needed to achieve his goal of “extending the likely life expectancy of humanity” – a life expectancy he acknowledged could be shortened by man-made disasters such as extreme global warming, or another World War.
Will Musk be able to send a man to Mars for only $ 100,000, according to experts?
Specialists told that it is impossible to predict exactly when the trips to Mars will be available. According to him, there are many theories that this could happen in 30-40 years.
“Musk plans to create an entire city the size of Sofia on Mars, which will one day be able to create its oxygen, infrastructure, and even administration. Until then, a system must first be built to send scientists to travel to Mars, as they do today to Antarctica or the International Space Station, “he said.
According to him, the first trips may cost millions of dollars, but over time the price will fall. This will happen when travel becomes a routine activity. For example, the cost of the rover, which is currently on the Red Planet, is $ 3 billion. However, the machines that will be used for trips to Mars will be used more than once and the price is gradually starting to pay off. This means that it will certainly start to fall over time.
