Looking for citations makes me doubt whether the nuke idea actually works. JoshuaZ cites the place I found the idea. Zubrin’s detailed paper (cited above) may partially explain why: only if the feedback coefficient is optimistically high would such an intervention work. Still, there are other methods that come with an order-of-magnitude higher price tag, such as super-greenhouse gasses. Also, we don’t yet know how favorable the feedback coefficient is.
However, Zubrin does propose a 125km-radius mirror to melt the ice caps, and dust would make such a project much more efficient. Building a 10,000 ton reflector in space is no mean feat, though.
I still claim that we could terraform mars for less than a tenth of the cost of Iraq/Afghanistan, if the money was actually used sanely (which is itself doubtful)
This article doesn’t cite everything that Roko says but seems like an ok citation for the general idea of using nukes to cover the poles with dust. I don’t know how much of a reliable source that is. I am under the impression that Zubrin in his book the Case for Mars suggests various methods for covering the poles with dust but doesn’t discuss using nukes. Given Zubrin’s general approach and the extensive nature of the book, this would suggest to me that Zubrin doesn’t take the idea seriously (and he’s clearly thought about Mars colonization more than anyone almost else). However, the book is old enough at this point that if this is a new idea he may just not have been aware of it at that time.
Citations needed.
Looking for citations makes me doubt whether the nuke idea actually works. JoshuaZ cites the place I found the idea. Zubrin’s detailed paper (cited above) may partially explain why: only if the feedback coefficient is optimistically high would such an intervention work. Still, there are other methods that come with an order-of-magnitude higher price tag, such as super-greenhouse gasses. Also, we don’t yet know how favorable the feedback coefficient is.
However, Zubrin does propose a 125km-radius mirror to melt the ice caps, and dust would make such a project much more efficient. Building a 10,000 ton reflector in space is no mean feat, though.
I still claim that we could terraform mars for less than a tenth of the cost of Iraq/Afghanistan, if the money was actually used sanely (which is itself doubtful)
This article doesn’t cite everything that Roko says but seems like an ok citation for the general idea of using nukes to cover the poles with dust. I don’t know how much of a reliable source that is. I am under the impression that Zubrin in his book the Case for Mars suggests various methods for covering the poles with dust but doesn’t discuss using nukes. Given Zubrin’s general approach and the extensive nature of the book, this would suggest to me that Zubrin doesn’t take the idea seriously (and he’s clearly thought about Mars colonization more than anyone almost else). However, the book is old enough at this point that if this is a new idea he may just not have been aware of it at that time.
If Zubrin didn’t mention nukes, it may have been for PR reasons.