Building a Marsbase is a Horrible Idea: Let’s do it!

I think you vastly underestimate the amount of radiation and how hard it would be to build a colony that is protected enough and is "self sustaining". Nice kurzgesagt video: ▶ this video If we manage to terraform mostly using robots and bacteria that would be so much easier.

There is no sugarcoating it, Mars is a hostile environment and to claim otherwise would simply be lying. Between the radiation, temperature, microdust and more, inhabiting Mars will be very hard. Kurzgesagt has a great video outlining many of the challenges [0]. Regardless of how meticulously you prepare, mistakes on Mars will lead to death and it's good to be honest and upfront about it. [0] ▶ this video

sobering run down of the realities when living on mars: ▶ this video The layers of soil we'd have to cover our buildings in really got me!

Perhaps watch this video for a nice overview of what that might look like: ▶ this video I think you'll probably see baby steps towards it but there are a lot of problems to overcome.

So many comments here are really depressing and lack a sense of adventure and romance. Yes, Mars One did not have a sound plan, but it inspired a certain kind of person who wants a grand adventure with impact. Mars to Stay is a legitimate idea and makes a lot of sense for colonization: link The Mars One idea of turning the colonists life into a reality TV show would be the first reality TV show I'd ever want to watch and would make a fantastic documentary. So, while Mars One was severely flawed, I think the Mars to Stay philosophy makes a lot of sense if we want to colonize Mars. ▶ this video