Assuming we had the technology, would any of you all be willing to go and live permanently on a habitable exoplanet or a terraformed planet?

Submitted by Golfer345 t3_y84e4r in Futurology

And let’s say that the settlement isn’t finished yet, so you’ll be going their to help build as much as live in it.

And let’s also say that the atmosphere doesn’t require any equipment like suits or respirators to survive in

Edit : we are using warp/Alcubierre drive and will arrive at far flung destination within months/years

Edit: we are going to a hypothetical “super-habitable” planet . A hypothetical (hopefully this will change soon) exoplanet that is even better than Earth for life to exist

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theironicmetaphor t1_isyh7p1 wrote

As long as there is a guarantee of indefinite habitability, (i.e. atmosphere, arable land, fresh water, etc.) I would say yes. I believe there is an innate desire in humanity to explore and settle in new areas. Humans migrated out of a small region of Africa and inhabited even the remotest islands of Earth in prehistoric times. It is simply human.

Personally, I think it links to that desire for simpler times, a slower more long-term vision, as opposed to the fast-paced, ruthless modern corporate life. You don't need to be a billionaire if you just have open land to build a home on and start a family.

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Chuck_Chaos t1_isyc0s6 wrote

Yes. Even though I work in Tech, there will always be a part of me that is a builder and a farmer.

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Tall-_-Guy t1_isymahl wrote

Also in tech. If the pay was the same I would just build furniture all day. I actually know a few tech bros that did just this.

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Chuck_Chaos t1_isymgii wrote

Yeah, matching the pay is the challenge for sure.

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Commandmanda t1_isye5xm wrote

Absolutely, so long as I was guaranteed my own habitation, food, healthcare and credits toward entertainment for the rest of my life. Oh, and it should have mountains and a beautiful sunset.

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RcCola2400 t1_iszswr3 wrote

Absolutely! If we had the technology and there were no politics. You could just go live life and not worry about a mortgage or taxes. But we all know that shit would follow.

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Chillbilk t1_it1v7s7 wrote

Well taxes and shit go as far as they can be enforced, living on a planet far enough for communications between Earth and it to not be instant would make it really difficult to control, and the planet would likely be or become independent, freed from the tyranny of Earth society and economy

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Longjumping_Kale1 t1_it20t3k wrote

Imagine if we went to a planet much larger than Earth, how long would it take to colonize it?

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moniconda t1_isymf8b wrote

The choice seems easy to me: languish as a mid-level nobody on a dying planet or go be a pioneer and make something unprecedented. I’d have to go.

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Golfer345 OP t1_it16mw8 wrote

How do you think you’ll cope leaving family and friends? Would we miss Earth landscapes and urban living? I wonder what kind of effect being on a distant sparsely populated planet would have on human psychology, and especially knowing that going back to Earth may be difficult or impossible

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moniconda t1_it1qt2u wrote

It’s definitely not for everyone. Kind of like the explorers of history, we would have to assume it was a one-way trip and say goodbye to our loved ones. I also assume there would be some rudimentary way to communicate, even if there was a delay.

My few loved ones would understand. But it would be really tough.

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oo7_and_a_quarter t1_isyck8z wrote

How long does the trip take? Do we have a functional stargate? Do we have ftl propulsion?

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Golfer345 OP t1_isyd7a7 wrote

Just made an edit to my OP clarifying that

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oo7_and_a_quarter t1_isydvcr wrote

I would probably not move based on my age. High risk with probable low reward.

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Chaiyns t1_isyghce wrote

As an absolute biology nut I would be pleased as punch to be pioneering a new planet, the sheer volume of new things to learn and study that humanity hasn't seen before would make me ecstatic to be there (assuming a modicum of comfortable living)

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clullanc t1_iszlu9w wrote

How many people are going? I’d be more than happy to escape earth, but if it was me and hundreds of people came along…then I’m not that sure.

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HugaM00S3 t1_isyjxym wrote

As a geologist working in Water Resources line of work, I’d totally be down.

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TerpenesByMS t1_isyw0v5 wrote

Based on all those edits, hell yes. Are you selling tickets? I'm a jack of all trades, I can learn to fix anything with only the paltry supplies we brought with us!

I don't care if it's 10 people, 100, 1000, a million. Anybody who says "hell yes" reflexively is my kind of people.

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Ok-Midnight5719 t1_iszac1x wrote

Is this about depopulating Earth or actually giving me my own sandbox to play in?

I'd want to go alone with several fleets of worker bots to make the world as I see fit.

I don't see the appeal in having to deal with the same obstructionists just on another planet.

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cousinoyaya t1_iszb6yo wrote

To be HONEST, honest: Internet access would be the deciding factor.

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ActualPhilosopher862 t1_iszou05 wrote

It would be the deciding factor for me too, but i'd want NO internet so everyone there would be forced to talk to each other. I'd hate to go all that way just to see a bunch of people staring at their phones. Not much of an adventure that way.

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One-Inch-Punch t1_it07yj4 wrote

If that is the farthest away that I can get from my soon to be ex wife, then sign me the hell up.

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AurumTyst t1_it0a17w wrote

Fuck yes. I'll be the first stowaway on the spaceships if I have to.

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SquirtBobby t1_it0xop5 wrote

Do you think those willing to make this sacrifice to build this civilization will have great power in that society, or will power be taken by someone who shows up once it’s already built?

The idea of being a space pioneer and having that sacrifice propel my family for generations to come sounds great, but if that new civilization is comparable to our current one I don’t know the sacrifice would ultimately be worth it.

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Golfer345 OP t1_it15szv wrote

Good question. What about some cult going to a different planet to start their own society in the same way Puritans and Pilgrims left England for New World? I was thinking a Luddite type cult that wants to just go back to the basics and be like tree hugging Avatar movie blue aliens. Does this sound more appealing?

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Tastoe t1_it14gko wrote

Not by choice. The Life on such a planet would be much harder. But if I had to, yes.

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a_seventh_knot t1_isyde6b wrote

depends, what's the weather like there? are there abundant, easily available resources or will settlers be clinging to life by a thread?

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Golfer345 OP t1_isyfvkb wrote

I gotta make another edit to my OP again lol. I was envisioning a, hopefully for now only, hypothetical “super-habitable” planet . A hypothetical exoplanet that is even better than Earth for life to exist

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HedgeCowFarmer t1_isyepzu wrote

Yes. All of my sci-fi and speculative fiction won’t go to waste

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Sam_k_in t1_iszevc1 wrote

Yes, I'd love to go with like 50 other people and design society from scratch.

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iNstein t1_iszyevh wrote

Sorry, I'm still not clear, we have the tech to visit a planet around another star, so would we not have a fully automated society by then and I'd only be coming along for the vacation? I just cime along for the ride. All design, construction, logistics etc will be taken care of by the automated systems. I'd be happy to take an unusual vacation.

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blackberyl t1_it0ixvl wrote

You don’t even need to add all that extra shit. So long as my wife gives me a hall pass (or I can take her and the kids) sign me up.

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crushfield t1_it0ucpr wrote

It's always been my dream to die in space so absolutely

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avatarname t1_itfrz6n wrote

Depends on how many people there are. Maybe if it was several tens of thousands, and it would be growing constantly, I would. I like living in places that change constantly and there are new developments and stuff being built, so I think I would enjoy to live in such a rapidly developing place, but not if there are like just some 80 first colonizers and next batch is coming in 10 years

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mrsunlight1 t1_isyzlbh wrote

If enough qualified people don’t want to, some might not get a choice…

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clullanc t1_iszld3a wrote

What do you mean by this?

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mrsunlight1 t1_it20vko wrote

Australia is an example of a colony founded by willing and unwilling people.

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QuestionableAI t1_isz05mf wrote

It will have to be in my next life and it would be interesting just in case I don't get that Star Trek Captain's chair I'm longing for.

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Separate_Ad_4668 t1_it1f99i wrote

I would leave right now. I'd love to go where there are few people and be a true pioneer. Going thru unknown hardships with no one to call for help, there's something about that sounds amazing.

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textorix t1_it20l3m wrote

Without hesitation I would chose to live permanently… I love my life and if it somehow turned bad I could still just shot myself or sth

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Sassafrasian t1_it513wo wrote

I hope one day humans step forth onto a foreign world, test atmosphere, and take their helmets off. That would be amazing to breathe the air of another planet. Terraforming is cool, but doesn’t interest me as much.

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Alias_The_J t1_it53wdp wrote

...I'd be happy to go and live permanently as a maintenance worker at McMurdo Station; a habitable exoplanet is a dream come true.

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Cr4zko t1_it5m1o9 wrote

What's the point if with this tech we could just fix Earth? Think about it we could actually control the weather.

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StarChild413 t1_it5v53w wrote

Despite what movies like Interstellar might put into people's heads about colonization, if we fix Earth, we can occupy more than one planet at a time

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StarChild413 t1_it5v45r wrote

I'm trying for a music career (and would likely be far along by the time we had the tech if you're not metaphorically asking if I'd go now) so I'd need some way (either with FTL communication or some sort of satellite daisy-chain) to have lag-free Internet on there and enough infrastructure that it could support things like a recording studio

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ManzoTheSawedOff t1_itb6ayo wrote

Will it be harder or easier to get laid there? New York style pizza?

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Maple_Station t1_itdjj48 wrote

Depends on what sort of people are also going and what sort of society they're expecting to be building.

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InfoSponge95 t1_iszawvg wrote

Ill stay here and clean up the mess, you guys go right ahead!

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odilasa t1_iszk573 wrote

Yes...without getting too fantastic "modern" day society is pretty boring.

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