21st century ...

2050-2059 timeline contents

2050 - Humanity is at a crossroads | Nearly half of the Amazon rainforest has been deforested | Wildfires have tripled in some regions | Smaller, safer, hi-tech automobiles | Major advances in air travel comfort | Continent-wide "supergrids" provide much of the world's energy needs

2051 - An interstellar radio message arrives at Gliese 777 | Britain holds its centennial national exhibition

2053 - Moore's Law reaches stunning new levels | Genetically engineered "designer babies" for the rich

2055 - The vast majority of countries are democratic | Traditional media have fragmented and diversified | Global population is reaching a plateau

2056 - Global average temperatures have risen by 3°C | Fully synthetic humans are becoming technically feasible

2057 - Computers reach another milestone | Handheld MRI scanners

2058 - Construction of a radio telescope on the Moon

2059 - The end of the oil age | Mars has a permanent human presence by now

 

2000-2009 | 2010-2019 | 2020-2029 | 2030-2039 | 2040-2049 | 2050-2059 | 2060-2069 | 2070-2079 | 2080-2089 | 2090-2099 >

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2050

Humanity is at a crossroads

The world of 2050 is a world of contrasts and paradoxes. On the one hand, science and technology have continued to advance in response to emerging crises, challenges and opportunities. This has created radical transformations in genetics, nanotechnology, biotechnology and related fields. On the other hand, many of these same technologies have been so disruptive that it has led to a more frightening, unpredictable and chaotic world than ever before. Humanity is now at a crossroads that will determine its future path for centuries to come - survival or destruction, prosperity or collapse.

Some of the most cherished political, economic and social structures have been turned on their heads. In a sense, capitalism remains the dominant economic model, but is now evolving drastically in response to ecological impacts,* resource scarcity,* demographic trends,* technology* and a host of other factors.* The endless consumer culture that was prevalent throughout the first world has all but collapsed, replaced by a societal need to conserve.* Though there are still many wealthy people around, money is concentrated in a shrinking upper class. By 2050, traditional free market capitalism is largely viewed as a broken system.***

As more and more wealth trickles upwards to the hyper-rich elite, there is a growing consensus that money itself - the profit motive - is the main obstacle to future progress, and a new driving force may be required for civilisation to flourish. Debates are raging on what reforms to make in order to adapt societies to this rapidly changing world. People everywhere sense that a great transition is approaching, the likes of which has never been seen before in all of human history.* It is clear that some new global paradigm will appear; but it is still unclear what this will be.

 

 

Decades of stagflation have produced a fragmented, chaotic and perpetually sluggish global economy. Nearly half of the world's nations have "junk" credit ratings, effectively making them bankrupt.* US national debt has now reached almost 400% of GDP,* far exceeding even the levels seen during World War II. China and India, though surpassing the US in overall GDP,* have also stagnated.

In the face of economic catastrophe, international politics has faced enormous challenges. Although the number of democratic countries has risen significantly over the years,* many have turned inward, cutting off foreign relations. Revolutions, wars and failed states have produced a strikingly different geopolitical map than seen at the beginning of the century. To repair and maintain the fabric of society, an increasing number of regions have abandoned their national currencies in favour of interest-free, non-fiat, non-inflationary local ones.* Decentralised cash systems such as the Bitcoin* and other electronic alternatives have also exploded in use.

Social systems are under extraordinary stress today. The younger generations are increasingly resentful towards the elderly – seeing them as the cause of many problems, and a drain on capital as the ratio of workers to seniors continues to fall.** The rich and poor have continued to grow apart, now that upward social mobility has become next to impossible. Massive protests outside corporate HQs and gated communities are a daily reality on the news. Global warming has created almost 150 million climate refugees - a sixfold increase compared to 2010.* The influx of people to foreign lands has put a further strain on economies. Resentment towards migrants has produced an upsurge in nationalism with many isolationist parties sweeping government elections. To maintain order and stability, martial law and military occupation is a feature of many cities around the globe. Radical new political parties and movements have emerged, advocating the overthrow of the reigning system.

Recycling and waste management – for decades neglected by many countries* – are among the issues now taking centre stage.* New regulations and market pressures have forced corporations to move away from the model of planned obsolescence** and mass production, to one of conservation and responsibility. Most firms no longer sell entirely new models of their products when technological advances are made. Instead, replacement components and upgrades form the bulk of profits, with items made of universally interchangeable parts. In a world of increasing resource conflicts, "doing more with less" has become an essential mantra.* A system is also employed whereby customers return products at the end of their life cycle, to be used as materials for the next generation. In some of the worst-hit countries, mandatory resource dumps are organised, in which citizens are obligated to recycle any unnecessary personal possessions. Naturally, such systems are highly controversial and intrusive.

Meanwhile, the widespread use of robots,* automation,* 3D printing* and other technology has rendered obsolete many traditional human roles. Though industries have made vast improvements in speed and efficiency, it has come at the expense of a declining labour force. Consequently, government revenues have seen a net reduction.

 

 

Radical Islam and its resentment of the West continue to produce new Jihadists. In addition, underground groups ranging from those angry at the first world's neglect, to anarcho-primitivists, have also sprung up. By 2050, at least one terrorist nuclear attack on a major world city has been conducted by one of these groups. Large amounts of nuclear material had been missing from Russia since the early 1990s and some inevitably fell into the wrong hands.* Being orders of magnitude greater than 9/11, the effects of this attack leave a deep psychological scar on many people alive today, fuelling much paranoia and suspicion between nations.

Despite this turmoil, progress has been achieved in cooperating on certain key issues, such as global warming. Carbon emissions have fallen substantially compared with 1990 levels,* thanks to a global carbon tax* and the widespread deployment of solar, wind and wave power,* together with 4th generation nuclear.* Fossil fuel reserves were declining in any case.** Fusion power is also becoming available now* and is being adopted by some of the leading nations. Orbital solar is another emerging industry.* Energy efficiency and conservation have provided further reductions in CO2 output.

However, carbon emissions from earlier decades remain locked into the system. This delayed reaction will continue to affect weather patterns and climate stability,* as will the ongoing destruction of the Earth's rainforests, some of which are transitioning from carbon sinks to carbon sources. Sea levels have risen over a foot by now* and are beginning to affect much of the world's coastal real estate. Large-scale carbon capture and sequestration** appears to be humanity's last and only hope of reversing these trends.

 

 

 

Nearly half of the Amazon rainforest has been deforested

Lack of enforcement in the so-called protected areas has resulted in the Amazon undergoing a catastrophic decline. Though army troops were sent into regions of illegal deforestation, their numbers were simply too small, and the Amazon too vast, to have sufficient impact. Political corruption also played a role in undermining protection efforts. Droughts caused by global warming have further contributed to the decline, with many areas of jungle being turned into parched scrubland. By 2050, nearly 2.7 million sq km have been deforested.*

 

 

As a result, over 30 billion tons of carbon have been added to the atmosphere. Although clean energy sources are offsetting this, it can't save the countless species of plant and animal life dependent on the rainforest for survival. Substantial amounts of biodiversity have been lost. Desperate efforts are being made by non-profit organisations to obtain DNA samples, in the hope of resurrecting these species at some point in the future.

 

Above: A red-eyed tree frog

 

 

Wildfires have tripled in some regions

Rising global temperatures are creating drier conditions for vegetation - producing larger and more frequent wildfires. In North America, the geographic area typically burned has increased by an average of 50%. Worst hit are the forests of the Pacific Northwest and the Rocky Mountains, which have seen a tripling of areas affected.*

With so much extra burning, air quality and visibility in the western United States is being significantly altered. There has been a 40% rise in organic carbon aerosols and other smoke particles. These irritate the lungs, but are especially dangerous to people who have trouble breathing as a result of asthma and other chronic conditions. Southern Europe is also badly affected - especially Greece, which has been ravaged in recent decades.*

These wildfires are triggering positive feedback loops. As more and more carbon is liberated from burning material and released into the atmosphere, this is further accelerating the pace of global warming.

 

 

 

Smaller, safer, hi-tech automobiles

Increased living costs and environmental regulations have resulted in smaller, cheaper, more energy-efficient cars.

More people than ever before are choosing to live and work alone, while the number of children per couple has also dropped sharply; two additional factors which have led to these lighter, more compact vehicles - a large percentage of which carry no more than one or two passengers.

Nearly all cars in the developed world are now computer-controlled, while traffic flow and road management issues are handled by advanced networks of AI. The resulting fall in congestion has boosted some economies by tens of billions of dollars.

The inherent safety of being controlled by machine, rather than human hands, allows for greater speed of travel: over 200mph on some motorways. Even when crashes do occur, which is extraordinarily rare, the built-in safety features and toughened materials (including the use of carbon nanotubes) means that fatalities are becoming virtually non-existent.

Meanwhile, a number of the largest automakers are conducting long term research into hovering/flying vehicles, based on existing military technology.

 

A typical mid-range car of 2050.

 

 

Major advances in air travel comfort

The vast majority of aeroplanes are now hydrogen powered, or use some combination of hydrogen and other renewable energy. In addition, travel times have greatly improved. Hypersonic engines, which entered use in 2033, have seen further development - aided by the rapid growth of artificial intelligence and the resulting advances in computer-automated design evolution. It is now possible to reach anywhere on the planet in under 2.5 hours.

The interiors of some planes are breathtakingly luxurious compared to those of earlier decades. New materials have enabled the use of transparent walls and ceilings, flooding the fuselage with natural light. The seating areas are beautifully spacious and filled with interactive technology.

When flights are running at less than full capacity, unneeded seats are shuffled to the rear, where they collapse and are hidden from view. The remaining seats are then redistributed, rearranging themselves to offer everyone the maximum possible legroom. These seats also morph to fit passengers' bodies. They can re-energise travellers with vitamin and antioxidant-enriched air, mood lighting, aromatherapy and acupressure treatments.*

In the middle of the plane is a hi-tech zone offering a range of activities - from virtual golf, to conference facilities and bar/lounge settings.

 

 

 

Continent-wide "supergrids" provide much of the world's energy needs

The need for reliable, clean, cost-effective energy has led to the creation of electrical "supergrids" across much of the world. These allow nations to share power from abundant green sources and distribute it to those regions most in need. By cooperating in this way, it is possible to substantially reduce waste and to optimise power supplies on a continent-wide scale, at all times of the year.

For instance, winter gales in the North Sea can provide a surplus of wind power, which is complemented by the summer winds of Morocco and Egypt. Meanwhile, solar panels in northern Africa generate three times the electricity compared with the same panels in northern Europe, due to the greater intensity of sunlight. Up to 100 GW of power is being supplied from Africa to Europe in this way.*

Similar large-scale infrastructure is now in place throughout America, Asia and other parts of the world.

Long distance transmission technology has seen major advances over the decades. Each country is connected to the grid using high-voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission, instead of traditional alternating current (AC) lines. This results in far greater efficiency, since DC lines have much lower electrical losses over long distances.

 

Source: DESERTEC Foundation

 

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2051

An interstellar radio message arrives at Gliese 777

The Yevpatoria RT-70, located at the Center for Deep Space Communications in Ukraine, was among the largest radio telescopes in the world, with a 70m antenna diameter. On 1st July 1999, it beamed a noise-resistant message named "Cosmic Call 1" into space. This was sent towards Gliese 777, a yellow subgiant star, 52 light-years away in the constellation of Cygnus. At least two extrasolar planets were known to be present in this system. In April 2051, the message arrives at its destination, for any potential alien civilisations to hear and decode it.

 

Credit: S. Korotkiy

 

 

Britain holds its centennial national exhibition

A centennial national exhibition is held in the UK, in keeping with the precedent set by the Great Exhibition of 1851* and the 1951 Festival of Britain.* The opening ceremony is attended by King William V, now aged 69.

 

 

 

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2053

Moore's Law reaches stunning new levels

Due to Moore's Law, the average desktop computer now has the raw processing power equivalent to all of the human brains on Earth combined. There is no longer a clear distinction between human and machine intelligence. Entities of astonishing realism and interactivity are widespread. Many are in fact merging with human intelligence, as the trend towards brain-computer links increases.

Video games of today provide fantastically lifelike experiences. Full immersion VR is now a mainstream phenomenon, having developed rapidly over the last decade. Recent advances in AI have led to Matrix-style worlds of breathtaking scale and ingenuity. Entire new societies have formed in cyberspace, with many in developed nations spending their entire leisure time engaged in them. Mounting stresses from the outside world have served to increase demand for this form of recreation: as a means of escaping from reality itself.

 

Credit: Ray Kurzweil

 

 

Genetically engineered "designer babies" for the rich

The ability to manipulate DNA has come a long way since its discovery in 1953. A century on, wealthy parents now have the option of creating "perfect" babies in the laboratory. This is done by picking and choosing their best hereditary traits. Gender, height, skin, hair and eye colour - along with hundreds of other characteristics - can be programmed into the embryo prior to birth. The embryo is then grown in an artificial uterus.*

The most advanced (and controversial) techniques involve manipulating the brain to improve the child's intelligence, behaviour and personality. Many conservative and religious groups decry what they see as the commercialisation of the human body.

 

© Oxlock | Dreamstime.com

 

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2055

The vast majority of countries are democratic

The ongoing flow of information - aided by mobile communications, social media and other technology - continues to spread democracy. The vast majority of countries now have free and fair elections.*

However, the trend has begun to plateau in recent decades. Climate change is now having a significant impact on regional stability, particularly in Africa and the Middle East, where concerns over scarcity of resources have created conditions allowing dictators and authoritarian governments to make a comeback.

In any case, a number of cultures are simply more compatible with monarchies, theocracies and autocracies at the present time. These parochial nations will remain undemocratic for some time to come.

 

 

 

Traditional media have fragmented and diversified

By now, traditional Western news corporations no longer exist. News gathering, analysis and distribution has instead fragmented - shifting to millions of creative individuals, bloggers, citizen journalists and small-scale enterprises. These work cooperatively and seamlessly, utilising a "global commons" of instantly shared knowledge and freely available resources. This includes information retrieval not only from cyberspace, but also in the real world; embedded in everything from webcams and personal digital devices, to orbiting satellites, robots, vehicles, roads, street lamps, buildings, stadia and other public places.

Even people themselves have become a part of this collection process. Bionic eye implants (for example) can relay data and footage on the spot, in real time, from those willing to participate.

Traditional Western TV channels have largely disappeared, replaced by unique "personalised" web channels, covering practically any subject or combination of subjects imaginable. These are filtered and customised to the exact tastes and requirements of the individual and are viewable anywhere, at anytime. They can be highly interactive and are often experienced in virtual reality settings, rather than on a screen. This is especially true of movies, many of which have non-linear plotlines allowing the viewer to influence the outcome themselves, or even to become characters within the film.

Mass advertising, too, has undergone a revolution in Western societies. Some of the oldest outdoor media still exist - such as posters, billboards and leaflets - which continue to survive in holographic and other forms. However, online web and televisual product/service information is now accessed almost entirely from on-demand, advanced customer feedback networks along with automated, semantic web assistants. Together these can provide instant, factual and trustworthy information on a highly personalised level: automatically filtering any marketing bias or corporate propaganda which might have influenced a consumer in the past.

Despite the increased choice and empowerment, one major consequence of this fragmentation (a trend which began in the 1980s) has been increased isolation of the individual. A decrease in the shared experience of media has led to a further decline in Western family life.

Poorer nations are still reliant on traditional forms of media, marketing and information exchange. In the near future, however, they too will make the transition - thanks to rapidly improving access to web technology.

 

© Ken Toh | Dreamstime.com

 

 

Global population is reaching a plateau

The global population is stabilising at between 9 and 10 billion.* Most of the recent growth has occurred in the developing world. However, better education along with improved access to contraception, family planning and other birth control methods is now markedly reducing the number of children per couple. Information technology has played a major role in boosting literacy levels and spreading knowledge to the world's poor.

The global population is also getting older, putting a huge strain on government welfare systems and employment. More than a fifth of the planet is aged over 60 now* - and with so many breakthroughs in medicine, this trend will only continue.

More than two-thirds of people live in urban areas by this time,* compared with 50% in 2010,* and there are vast, sprawling megacities in all corners of the globe. In the very densest parts of the world, the tallest skyscrapers reach thousands of metres in height, are occupied by millions of people, and are effectively cities in their own right with self-sufficient energy and food production. Many residents within these towers spend almost their whole lives in these buildings, with little need or want to venture outside.

The population of the USA has reached nearly 450 million now (up from 309 million in 2010), with Hispanics doubling their share of the population to 30% and Asians going from 5% to 9%. Non-Hispanic whites have become a minority, with their share dropping to below 45%.* They made up 85% of the population in 1960. Due to climate change, living standards have been highest in the northern states, which have better access to water and are generally more stable. California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas have seen huge declines in wealth and influence.

Despite recent advances in energy, food production and other technology, there are still widespread conflicts around the globe - due to a rapidly worsening environment, coupled with a host of socio-political issues as the world struggles to adopt a more sustainable economic paradigm. Huge shantytowns have formed in some countries, with millions of people displaced. The worst-affected regions are so destitute that they have been reclassified as "fourth world" countries.* Desperate attempts are now underway to sequester carbon from the atmosphere in the hope of reversing the effects of global warming.

 

 

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2056

Global average temperatures have risen by 3°C*

Global warming has begun to race out of control with temperatures fed by increasingly strong feedback mechanisms. Melting permafrost in the Arctic is now releasing vast amounts of methane – a greenhouse gas more than 70 times stronger than CO2.* Plants are decaying faster in the warmer climate, while the oceans are liberating ever greater amounts of dissolved CO2.

The Earth is now the hottest it has been since the mid-Pliocene, over 3 million years ago,* and there are permanent El Nino conditions* – resulting in widespread, extreme weather events in regions around the world. Severe droughts, torrential flooding, hurricanes and other disturbances are now a constant feature on the news. Southeast Asia, the Middle East and Africa are the places most affected. Developing countries dependent on agriculture and fishing – especially those bordering the Pacific Ocean – are particularly badly hit.

In Pakistan, a calamity of epic scale is unfolding. The nation has been declared a failed state, its government having lost control, with armed gangs seizing what little food and water remains. Tens of millions of refugees are attempting to leave the country as rivers run permanently dry.* India has fared little better. The country’s agriculture is now under severe stress, with monsoons ranging from extremely wet seasons to extremely dry ones. In the more intense wet years, the flooding is catastrophic, submerging vast areas of land.

In America, the east coast is being hit particularly hard now. Chesapeake Bay - the largest estuary in the country - has been devastated by recent flooding disasters, rising sea levels and storm damage. The economies of Maryland and Virginia have suffered greatly.

 

Credit: NASA

 

Much of the Gulf Coast region has been abandoned, while droughts are worsening in the southwest of the country. More than 15m Americans now qualify as displaced persons.* A surge in migration to Canada is underway – one of the few areas of the world that still offers somewhat favourable environmental conditions.

In Europe, food riots have continued to spread. Temperatures that were previously found only in North Africa and the Middle East have become the norm in central and southern parts of the continent.* Britain now has a Mediterranean climate* and is engaged in a food-sharing process with its neighbour Ireland.* Rising sea levels, erosion and storm surges are wreaking havoc on the coastline.*

Australia is being plagued by extreme heatwaves. The country is experiencing severe and prolonged droughts, together with a huge increase in wildfires and dust storms. The elderly are especially at risk from this hotter and drier weather.*

The Arctic – which became ice-free in September months by the 2030s – now has up to three months of ice-free conditions per year. This has made the region attractive to shipping and exploitation of natural resources, with various new trade routes being opened up. Iceland is benefiting from this, becoming like Singapore in some ways.* Many previously uninhabited islands in the Arctic are now being colonised.

 

 

 

Fully synthetic humans are becoming technically feasible

In 2010, scientists created the first synthetic cell. Mycoplasma laboratorium was an entirely new species of bacterium, with a man-made set of genetic code, placed on a synthetic chromosome inside an empty cell. Using its new "software", the cell could generate proteins and produce new cells.*

This was followed in subsequent years by a variety of specialised organisms. Some were able to generate new vaccines and medicines; others produced biofuels and similarly useful products.

As the decades went by, larger and more complex life forms were created in the laboratory, including multi-celled animals large enough to be seen by the naked eye.

Synthetic genomics continued to advance exponentially, driven by the breakneck pace of information technology. Large animals - variants of birds, fish and mammals - became available with fully customisable limbs, sensory organs and other features, for use in a variety of commercial, scientific and industrial roles. New plants were created too, some with bizarre yet extremely useful abilities. Certain trees, for example, could be programmed to grow and shape themselves into furniture or building components.

By 2056, the number of cells that can be synthesised in a single organism is reaching almost 100 trillion: equal to the total number in the human body.* Debates are now occurring over "synthetic people" entering the population. What rights and freedoms would they have? Countless moral, ethical and legal arguments are raised.

For now, the vast majority of countries are unable to authorise the technology; the cultural lag is simply too great. Just as stem cells were controversial in the USA during the early 2000s, the creation of synthetic humans represents a step too far, for many people.

However, a small number of countries - notably China - secretly push ahead with the project. Test subjects are successfully created, then made to take part in biotechnology experiments. Although hidden from public view, rumours begin to emerge of horrific abuses.

 

© Madartists | Dreamstime.com

 

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2057

Computers reach another milestone

Desktop PCs now have raw processing power equivalent to all of the human brains which ever existed on Earth.* This is a result of Moore's Law - the trend in computer processing power which has been increasing exponentially for over a century.

Computers are becoming so powerful that many high-level tasks in business and government are being handed over directly to them. For years, software had lagged behind hardware in development, which impeded the spread of AI, but this is no longer the case. Ever more sophisticated programs have begun to create a chain reaction of self improvement cycles. This has led to an "intelligence explosion", with some of the biggest political decisions on the world stage now being influenced by sentient machines.

Of course, there are controls and regulations in place to guide these actions (to prevent the use of nuclear missiles for example). Nevertheless, it is becoming obvious to everyone by now that machines are quite literally taking over the world.

 

© Cammeraydave | Dreamstime.com

 

 

Handheld MRI scanners

The ability to scan, analyse and diagnose the body has taken a huge leap forward by now. Hi-res, 3D imaging of internal structures and brain activity is now possible using real-time video rather than static photos. This can be accomplished with devices no bigger than a camera.*

In the early 2000s, these machines were so bulky that they filled whole rooms.* Scans typically required half an hour or longer to create. They were also highly expensive: upwards of a million dollars for a state-of-the-art model, with each individual scan costing hundreds of dollars.

A new generation of machines began to evolve, based on supersensitive atomic magnetometers, able to detect the tiniest magnetic fields. These replaced the huge doughnut-shaped magnets that had been used in the past. By the late 2050s, MRI scans had become as quick and easy as taking a photograph, with a hundredfold decrease in cost.* Healthcare programs in developing countries would benefit particularly from this.

 

© Katie Nesling | Dreamstime.com

 

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2058

Construction of a radio telescope on the Moon*

The telescope is 100m wide and located on the Moon's far side, giving it a stable platform with slow rotation rate (0.5 arcsec/sec), beyond the interference of Earth's atmosphere and cluttered radio background. This provides astronomical images with a clarity unmatched by any observatory on Earth or in space. Individual stars, billions of light years away, can be seen assembling into the first galaxies.

The telescope is situated within an impact crater. Both it and the surrounding infrastructure are built using a mixture of epoxy, self-assembling carbon nanotubes and material from the Moon itself - drastically reducing costs.*

 

Credit: NASA

 

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2059

The end of the oil age

For most of the 20th century, prospectors discovered far more oil than industrial societies could consume. This was an era of cheap and plentiful energy, which saw huge growth in the world's economy and population. By the 1970s, however, a major slowdown in discoveries was observed. This continued into the 21st century - contributing to a financial crisis that persisted for decades, led to a near-total collapse of the global economy and drove nations to the brink of another World War. It was only through massive government intervention, last-minute substitutes for crude oil and widespread deployment of renewable energy that a major catastrophe was averted. By the late 2050s, the end of the 200-year oil age is approaching, with the final dregs being extracted in the Middle East.*

 

 

 

Mars has a permanent human presence by now

By the end of this decade, a permanent team of scientists is present on Mars.* They number around a dozen and comprise a highly international mix of people.

The first civilian tourist has also arrived. Travel to Mars was made cheaper and faster thanks to the development of nuclear pulse propulsion. This cut journey times from six months to just a few weeks.*

The base will soon be expanded with new facilities including a larger power plant, mining equipment, nanofabricators and greenhouses.* Vehicles are also being supplied to improve the astronauts' mobility, allowing them to roam hundreds of miles. Additional bases are already being planned to accomodate larger teams of scientists, as well as corporate interests.

The habitat modules are constructed partially underground, giving protection from the ultraviolet glare of the Sun. Meanwhile, radiation-absorbing materials based on advanced nanotechnology are used in spacesuits, as well as on the exterior of the vehicles. These same materials have special filters to block even the tiniest particles of dust, providing long term protection against the environment outside.

All of the above is providing the critical mass needed for self-sufficiency. Operations will soon be conducted entirely independent of Earth. In the coming years, the first children will be born on Mars.

 

Source: NASA