It sounds like science fiction, but journalist Stephen Petranek considers it fact: within 20 years, humans will live on Mars. In this provocative talk, Petranek makes the case that humans will become a spacefaring species and describes in fascinating detail how we'll make Mars our next home. "Humans will survive no matter what happens on Earth," Petranek says. "We will never be the last of our kind."

Stephen Petranek: Your kids might live on Mars. Here's how they'll survive

Your kids might live on Mars. Here's how they'll survive

Technological innovations, like extracting water from Martian atmosphere and scalable oxygen production, are key to sustaining life on Mars.

Harnessing Mars' soil water and tech like Moxie, which converts CO2 to O2, makes Martian colonization conceivable by 2027.

Visionary plans to terraform Mars include subliming polar CO2 to thicken its atmosphere, simulating Earth-like conditions.

*How We'll Live on Mars*

4 big questions about the race to Mars

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