ARGUING YES
Senior Space Editor at Ars Technica
ARGUING NO
Space & Science Writer
MODERATOR
Host and Moderator-in-Chief
This week:
- New episode: Should the U.S. get ahead of China on a possible Mars Space Race?
- A closer look at Americans who believe a new Space Race could lead to humans living on the moon or Mars
- Last week to vote for us to win a Webby Award!
- Your Sunday reading list
Humans on Mars? As a kid, I assumed we’d be there by now, and the prospect excited me. I remember the night my family watched live that grainy image of Neil Armstrong stepping onto the Moon’s surface. We’d beaten the Russians! Immediately afterward, I went out into our backyard. The night was clear. I looked up at the Moon and I thought how now there were people up there, and how that changed everything — frontier lines, self-perception, possibilities. We were on our way.
What I never expected was that the impetus to keep going would run out of steam so soon, that decades would pass with nobody landing on the Moon again (1972 was the last visit), not to mention Mars, and I never expected that China would emerge as a real competitor to get to Mars before everyone else. Of course, we saw Donald Trump make the claim just this past March, that Mars was on his agenda and that American astronauts would plant the Stars and Stripes in Martian soil… eventually.
This week’s debate — where we ask “Should We Prioritize Human Settlement on Mars?” — explores that very aspiration, but it also looks at why it hasn’t been realized yet, and whether it is even worth pursuing.
Our question poses a set of choices that are as much ethical as they are financial and technological. Our two debaters are science writers Eric Berger and Shannon Stirone. Where the first sees almost a moral imperative in extending the reach of human settlement, the other sees risks that are too great, both to the Red Planet and the explorers themselves.
But, there are other issues to consider. What about the benefits to science that would result from figuring out how to make Mars livable? What about the sound prediction that, billions of years from now, Earth itself will not be livable?
As a long-time space nerd (who had models of the Apollo spacecraft in his bedroom), I can say that this debate landed in my personal Open to Debate Top 10. The arguments were thoughtful and robust, and made me think about the whole question in new ways. I hope you’ll give it a listen.
Sincerely,
John Donvan
DEBATING THE DATA
Would you want to live on another planet?
POINT/COUNTERPOINT
Should the U.S. Prioritize Settling Mars?
YES: Eric Berger
“So much of the 20th and 21st centuries have been marked by human degradation of this world — deforestation, climate change, landfills, nuclear waste. How much of a redemptive story for a species would it be if we could take on another world, a dry and desolate place like Mars, and renew conditions for life there? That is what is possible in the future by taking the first steps towards space settlement today.”
NO: Shannon Stirone
“The amount of money it would take to build any kind of infrastructure on Mars, whether that’s for three humans or for a whole settlement of people, is trillions and trillions of dollars. It is absurd to me that we would even entertain the idea of investing that many resources into a world that is so deadly when we have a perfectly wonderful planet here that desperately needs our help. We need help living here.”
Only a Few Days Left to Vote in the Webby Awards!
Our debate “Mock Trial: Should the Courts Restrict Access to the Abortion Pill?” is nominated for a 2025 Webby Award in Best Individual Podcast Episode: News & Politics!
To help us win the People’s Voice Award, your vote matters.
Take a minute to cast your ballot by Thursday, April 17th: VOTE NOW – We appreciate your support!
WEEKLY POINTS OF VIEW
If Powerful Places Like Harvard Don’t Stand Up to Trump, Who Can?
Lawrence Summers | April 3, 2025
The New York Times
Watch Lawrence’s debate on whether Ukraine should get Russia’s frozen assets
The Many Hues of the Autism Spectrum
John Donvan | April 4, 2025
The Wall Street Journal
Watch John’s conversation with Mónica Guzmán on having curious conversations in divided times
With his marathon speech, Cory Booker showed us how to fight
Karen Attiah | April 3, 2025
The Washington Post
Watch Karen’s debate on whether cancel culture is toxic
How to buy a year of happiness, explained in one chart
Sigal Samuel | March 31, 2025
Vox
Watch Sigal’s debate on whether we should erase bad memories
We’re Open to Changing Our Minds — Are You?
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