WSC 2020 - BMH vs. CCT - #No.6

Where might human stasis be used?

• In an ambulance carrying a patient with a heart attack.

• In an expedition to the Amazon Rain Forest.

• In generation ships traveling to a far away star

• In a submarine traveling to the bottom of the sea.

Answer explanation

In lieu of generation ships, one could imagine people on missions to other planets somehow frozen or suspended for a period of time, then revived at the end—spending the actual travel time in a condition NASA calls “human stasis”. It involves lowering the temperature of the astronauts by 5 - 10OC, reducing metabolism and decreasing the amount of food that has to be bought aboard the ship. This in turn then decreases the travel time due to reduced weight.

What is the aim of the Breakthrough Starshot Initiative?

• To send a videotape to outer space for aliens.

• To send tourists to the International Space Station.

• To send a space shuttle to Mars.

• To send a satellite to Alpha Centauri.

Answer explanation

The Breakthrough Starshot Initiative is an initiative that would aim to get a satellite to Alpha Centauri in 20 years, using the technology of Solar Sails. Alpha Centauri is the closest star to our Solar System (besides the Sun) but is still 41 trillion km away, so solar sails are currently the only reasonable option. Solar sails work in a similar way to regular sails; they’re slowly accelerated by the force of light from the sun, but are able to reach very high speeds. Breakthrough Starshot are aiming to attach a tiny microchip to a solar sail and send it off towards Alpha Centauri. However, both dust and radiation may interfere with it along the way, so it’s not certain that this solar sail will be successful. However, it’s the best technology that we currently have for interstellar travel.

What technology will the Breakthrough Starshot Initiative use to move forward?

• Anti-Matter

• Nuclear Engines

• Solar sails

• Alcubierre Drives

Which of the following is an example of an exoplanet?

• Sagittarius A*

• Kepler 168-F

• Mars

• Sirius

Answer explanation

Exoplanets are any planets found outside of the solar system. For a long time, until 1992 in fact, exoplanets only existed in science fiction and theory. Since then, 4104 exoplanets have been proven to exist as of December 4th! There are currently three main methods to discovering exoplanets. The first method is called radiational velocity, otherwise called the Doppler wobble, which basically measures how much a star “wobbles”. The second method is gravitational lensing, which occurs when a star comes next to another star which results in a change of the stars’ magnetic field. Last but not least, the transit method is the most logical. It analyses how much light a star emits, and if there are regular times when the light input seems to decrease, a planet is probably the reason behind that. This method also helps calculate the planet’s surface temperature. Kepler 168-F is an exoplanet known to be “the cousin of planet Earth”, because not only is it in the Goldilocks zone of its star, but it is also pretty Earth-size (only 10% larger than Earth). If you have connected the dots, that means either that 1) it could have liquid water on it and 2) it could be habitable!

Humans have identified exomoons before 1992.

• True

• False

What must an area around a star have to be considered a goldilocks zone?

• A temperature where liquid water can exist

• Nutritious soil

• Abundant oxygen

• Living species

Answer explanation

A Goldilocks zone (or in more scientific terms, the circumstellar habitable zone) is an area around a star where the temperature is just right to have a planet that could potentially be habitable. More specifically, the temperature needs to be around the temperature where liquid water can exist at a certain pressure. Fun fact: the Goldilocks zone is actually named after a fairy tale called “Goldilocks and the Three Bears” where a girl chooses from a set of items and settles for the one that is “just right”.

Super-habitable planets are planets that are...

• Barely habitable

• Equally habitable as Earth

• Less habitable than the Earth but still habitable

• More habitable than the Earth

Answer explanation

Super-habitable planets are planets that are more inhabitable than Earth, and could therefore support a wider range of biodiversity. Generally, it is expected that they would be about the same size as Earth, with possibly higher temperatures, higher concentrations of Oxygen in the atmosphere and that they would be a further distance from their sun (e.g. further into the habitable zone). Super-Earth planets, however, are exoplanets that have a larger mass than Earth but a lower mass than our solar system’s smallest gas giants, Uranus and Neptune.

On the Kardashev scale, what is our civilization classified as?

• Somewhere in between Type O and Type I

• Somewhere in between Type III and Type IV

• Type II

• Type V

Answer explanation

The Kardashev scale compares how much energy a civilisation uses to how much space they occupy (a planet, a solar system, a galaxy etc). According to Kardashev, how much energy a society is able to harness defines its technological status. Civilisations are classed in 6 boxes: type O, type I, type II, type III, type IV and type V (basically 0 to 5). Type 0 is least advanced and type 5 is a superpower civilisation controlling multiple universe! According to this article, we are not quite a type I civilisation.

What would Space Mirrors be used for on Mars?

• Decreasing the temperature of a certain area on the planet.

• Improving water flow on the planet.

• Increasing the temperature of a certain area on the planet.

• Decreasing radiation on the planet.

Answer explanation

Space Mirrors allows terraforming of specific locations on planets such as Mars by focussing sunlight onto a particular area, heating it up and making it more habitable. The current suggestion is to create a 1.5km wide mirror out of reflective balloons, suspended in Martian orbit. This would then focus sunlight onto one area, heating it up to 20OC, much more reasonable than the -140OC to -60OC that is normal on Mars!

How would an artificial magnetosphere help raise Mars’ temperature?

• It would protect the planet’s atmosphere.

• It would decrease formation of ice on the planet.

• It would promote volcanic eruptions on the planet.

• It would introduce microbes to the planet.

Answer explanation

Mars once had a very similar magnetic field to Earth, but it degraded over time. The lack of magnetic field on Mars resulted in a lack of protection to its atmosphere, reducing the atmosphere's size and dropping temperatures on Mars. However, it’s been proposed that by placing a giant magnetic shield at one of the Lagrange points, Mars’ would be protected. It’s expected that this would result in an increase of 4C per year, allowing liquid water and easier Mars exploration.