Discussion on sci.space.science

"JF Mezei" wrote in message ...

On 2018-08-09 16:52, Fred J. McCall wrote:

It's all about time scales. Can you add enough gas fast enough and
will it lose it slowly enough to be worthwhile.


You don't build and then board a leaky lifeboat unless you are damned
sure another boat will come in before it sinks.

You do if there's no other lifeboat at all.
But that's not even the point. I'll let you in on a hint. Pretty much all
boats leak. It's a matter of rate.

If the boat takes on 1 liter/hour and I can pump out 10 liter/hour, I'm not
worried.
If the boat takes on 1 liter/hour and it takes 1,000,000 liters to sink the
boat, I'm not worried.



Why spend the money/effort to add atmpsphere to Mars knowing that it
will be lost and you'll either have to continuously add to it, or
eventually leave Mars to get onto another planet?


Because those times are measured in centuries and quite manageable.

Much simpler to build a domed city then to terraform Mars.

Upfront sure. But then... you have to maintain your dome. And here's the
kicker, I can guarantee your dome WILL leak.
So why build a dome if you simply know it will leak? (using your logic).



And on a more basic question: assuming unlimited supply of compressed
air being shipped to Mars, is it realistic to expect liveable air
pressure at ground when you consider Mar's reduced gravity and how much
more air your would need above you to achieve anything near 14.7psi ?

You know, there's a thriving city here in the US that's a mile up... and has
an average psi of 12psi.
And that's not even all that extreme for human limits.



If you can't achieve proper air pressure at ground, it is worth the
effort to try to terraform the planet since you wouldn't be able to go
outside without a space suit ?

You know, last time I was in Denver, I was wearing shorts and a t-shirt. (of
course the next day I nearly missed my flight due to the snowstorm.)


--
Greg D. Moore http://greenmountainsoftware.wordpress.com/
CEO QuiCR: Quick, Crowdsourced Responses. http://www.quicr.net
IT Disaster Response -
https://www.amazon.com/Disaster-Resp...dp/1484221834/