Mars One mission calls for volunteers to be permanent residents on Mars

Earlier this month, the Mars One mission opened up applications for volunteers to become the founding members of the first Mars colony.

Mars One is a nonprofit organization that plans to create a human colony on a nearby planet by 2023. The decadelong program will broadcast the entire process to the world, from the selection of the first astronauts to the final goal of putting human footprints on the red planet.

The Mars One foundation owns 90 percent of the company’s stock in interplanetary Media Group, a for-profit company generating revenue through advertisements and broadcasting rights of the mission. The selection process for the 10-year colonization process has already began. Byte Internet and other contributors have given their services to create integral parts of the mission’s astronomic arsenal.

The Mars One website provides an in-depth look into the life of Mars colonists from the initial landing up to the lifestyle on Mars. The company stated that the first colonizers will not be limited to scientists.

“Mars One is looking for applicants who are both mature and interesting … No particular academic or professional background is considered a prerequisite for selection,” the company’s website states.

The colonization of Mars is the next step humanity will take in the realm of space. As funding for government space programs decreases, private companies such as Mars One and SpaceX are beginning to take charge toward the future of space technology and exploration.

Trees contribute to smog production using man-made chemicals

A recent study showed that pollutants created from man-made fossil fuel and coal consumption are creating harmful smog reacting with molecules released by trees. Isoprene, which is released by trees, creates protective barriers that protect from oxygen and temperature. However, the concentration of man-made nitrogen oxide molecules has begun to facilitate a reaction with isoprene particulates known to create particles that cause asthma and lung cancer.

The researchers at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill who made the discovery reported that the presence of these harmful molecules is the result of a process called anthropogenic energy production.

“We observe nature’s quirks, but we must always consider that our actions do have repercussions,” Jason Surratt, UNC environmental sciences and engineering assistant professor said in a press release.

“It’s the interaction between these natural and man-made emissions that produces this air pollution … and now we know one reason for how it happens.”

With this discovery, researchers can devise mechanisms to measure the concentration of these pollutants and their effects on the environment and public health.