SPACE TRAVEL
——————————————————————————————————————————— By Kira Lloyd
Space travel has come a long way since we launched the first rocket. What started as brief unmanned missions has turned into sending astronauts to space for months at a time. That alone is pretty cool when you think about it. But even with all this progress, there’ s still a long way to go, and plenty of room to expand horizons even further. The other day, I found myself thinking: Will we ever actually reach the point where people can actually live in space? I think it could really happen.
Right now, astronauts are already able to stay in space for up to a year at a time. With supply missions from Earth, they can have all the necessities to live comfortably for a while.
It’ s not great all the time, but it shows that long-term stays outside of Earth are doable, and that’ s just the beginning. Companies like SpaceX are testing reusable rockets, a massive development. In the past, rockets were single use and extremely expensive. Now, we’ re starting to see technology that allows rockets to be launched, land, and then be reused. That means fewer costs and more opportunities for space travel, making the idea of living in space more realistic. But of course, it’ s not just about getting there. There are a lot of problems that still need solving.
One major issue is radiation. I didn’ t know space was radioactive until just recently, but it turns out it is.
Earth has a magnetic field and an atmosphere that protect us from solar and cosmic radiation. If we were living in space— on the Moon, Mars, or in orbit, future space stations would need to be built with some way to keep inhabitants safe. Then there’ s gravity. While floating around would be pretty cool at first, zero gravity starts to take a toll on your body pretty quickly. Astronauts in low-gravity environments experience muscle loss, bone density issues, and even changes to their eyesight. Over time, those can become serious. That’ s why any kind of long-term living situation would either need artificial gravity, which could maybe be replicated from a sort of spinning habitat, or, be located on a planet like Mars that has at least some gravity.
24 LET’ S GO AEROSPACE