Colonizing Mars and the Moon: A Reality Check

Let’s say we actually build colonies on Mars or the Moon. What would they look like?

Forget the Hollywood domes and gleaming skylines—it’s more like claustrophobic bunkers underground.

The Moon? No atmosphere, massive temperature swings, nothing grows there.

Mars? Frozen, dusty, toxic soil, and radiation strong

enough to give sunscreen companies nightmares. Colonists would depend entirely on recycling air,

growing food in hydroponic farms, and shielding themselves from the cosmic equivalent of a

tanning bed on “lethal mode.” Early settlements would be glorified survival stations, not cities.

But humans are stubborn. We’ve thrived in deserts, frozen tundras, and even the Arctic.