Introduction
Introduction The history of Polar exploration on Earth provides two important lessons for future manned missions to Mars:
1. Use the best technology available
2. Live off the land
Sadly, British Polar expeditions tended to ignore both rules. Scott’s South Pole expedition violated Rule #1. They man hauled their sleds because they considered it more noble technology than using dogs. When their supplies ran out, they froze to death. Meanwhile, Amundsen’s party raced to the Pole by dog sled, throwing away surplus food on their way back. Sir John Franklin’s expedition to find the Northwest Passage perished when they violated Rule #2. They lived on the tinned food they had brought from England, ignoring the nearby healthy Eskimos who lived off the land. Eventually they starved to death helped along by lead poisoning from their tinned containers.
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Powell, J., Maise, G., Powell, J., Paniagua, J. (2009). Self-sustaining Martian Colonies Utilizing the North Polar Ice Cap and the Atmosphere. In: Badescu, V. (eds) Mars. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-03629-3_24
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