Terraforming

This section is about the hypothetical planetary engineering process. For other uses, see Terraform.
For the video game, see Syd Mead's TerraForming.
An artist's conception shows a terraformed Mars in four stages of development.

Terraforming or terraformation ("Earth-shaping") is the hypothetical process of deliberately modifying the atmosphere, temperature, surface topography or ecology of a planet, moon, or other body to be similar to the environment of Earth to make it habitable for humans to live on.

The concept of terraforming developed from both science fiction and actual science. Carl Sagan, an astronomer, proposed the planetary engineering of Venus in 1961, which is considered one of the first accounts of the concept.[1] The term was coined by Jack Williamson in a science-fiction short story ("Collision Orbit") published in 1942 in Astounding Science Fiction.[2]

Even if the environment of a planet could be altered deliberately, the feasibility of creating an unconstrained planetary environment that mimics Earth on another planet has yet to be verified. While Venus, Earth, Mars, and even the Moon have been studied in relation to the subject, Mars is usually considered to be the most likely candidate for terraforming. Much study has been done concerning the possibility of heating the planet and altering its atmosphere, and NASA has even hosted debates on the subject. Several potential methods for the terraforming of Mars may be within humanity's technological capabilities, but according to Martin Beech, the economic attitude of preferring short-term profits over long-term investments will not support a terraforming project.[3]

The long timescales and practicality of terraforming are also the subject of debate. As the subject has gained traction, research has expanded to other possibilities including biological terraforming, para-terraforming, and modifying humans to better suit the environments of planets and moons. Despite this, questions still remain in areas relating to the ethics, logistics, economics, politics, and methodology of altering the environment of an extraterrestrial world, presenting issues to the implementation of the concept.

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference The Planet Venus was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ "Historical Dictionary of Science Fiction: terraforming". Retrieved 2022-11-14.
  3. ^ Beech, Martin (21 April 2009). Terraforming: The Creating of Habitable Worlds. Springer Science & Business Media. p. 17. ISBN 978-0-387-09796-1. "The present economic fashion of favoring short-term gain over long term investment will never be able to support a terraforming project."