kobullso t1_j430g5j wrote on January 12, 2023 at 8:45 PM

Reply to comment by Bigram03 in At NASA, Dr. Z Was OK With Some Missions Failing by Maxcactus

The antarctic isn't more self sustaining because no one has ever been motivated enough to make it that way. Just because it hasn't been does mean the technology doesn't exist to do it.

RollinThundaga t1_j43yazj wrote on January 13, 2023 at 12:18 AM

It's functionally unplantable and literally goes dark for months of the year. The outposts are run off of diesel generators. Unless you either set up a nuclear plant or an entire oil/gas refining industry there (which will wreak havok on what fragile ecosystems there actually are) then there's not many avenues to do so with current technology.

It's not that we're 'not motivated' as much as 'motivated not to'.

kobullso t1_j43ypff wrote on January 13, 2023 at 12:21 AM

But you could. The technology exists to put solar panels and modular reactor. The technology exists the make buildings with grow lights. The argument isn't that it is worth it. It certainly isn't. The argument was that the technology exists to do it if we had any good reason to.