Ivan Lehocki, M.S. Geophysics
If the mission comes to life, they will be the
first people who will live and die on another planet. There they can expect
everyday struggle for survival but also an amazing new planet which could give
answers to many questions which tormented scientists from the past until now.
Ivan Lehocki as everyone else since childhood
has deeply implanted curiosity and a desire to understand how the world around
us functions. Most adults occupied with other problems forget about the
‘curious child’ within them but Ivan Lehocki is one of those who did not. He is
a student of space sciences and he has applied to go to Mars.
They say that Universe
is totality of everything that exists. But how to explain what Universe is and
what does it consist of?
Until recently it has been said that Universe
is totality of everything that exists. Until 1929 our galaxy was the entire
universe. Most cosmologists those ‘big boys’ who are trying to find the answers
to fundamental questions like who we are, where do we come from and what is the
future of our universe, believe that our universe is just one of many (a theory
of Multiverse). Our universe is full of big unknowns and there is very little that we do know. To be more precise, 72% of our
universe is made of dark energy, 23% dark matter, and only 5% of baryonic
matter, matter in other words atoms which are basic building blocks of stars,
planets and all living creatures. It means that 95% of known universe is made
of something that we don’t know what it is. That shows that we are still far
away from the goal to completely understand this universe.
Are all celestial
bodies equally important? Can we imagine life on planets without other stars
and satellites?
All celestial bodies are more or less equally
important. Stars are crucially important for fusion of chemical elements which
create basics for life itself. They are ‘our parents’. Planets are objects
which together with stars can create conditions for making and evolution of
life. But let’s not forget that physical laws enable the existence of stars and
other bigger and smaller structures in universe. And even asteroids and comets
are of great importance for human development. If 65 million years ago a comet
didn’t hit the Earth and in a short period of time killed all the dinosaurs,
maybe mammals Homo Sapiens would not have evolved and become a dominant species
on the blue planet. Life as we know it could not be imagined without the energy
and heat sent by the stars (in our case the Sun). At the same time we know that
there are simple organisms so called extremophiles which can survive for
millions of years in extremely difficult conditions in deep space. We can also
imagine that technologically very developed civilizations (if there are any)
can live on which ever planet they wish no matter how distant it is from its
star.
Is there a life on other planets besides Earth?
The answer to that question is that we have not
discovered life on other planets, but in Solar system there are a few serious
candidates which are being studied trying to find the answer to that question.
My personal belief is that the universe is just too big to have life on only one
planet. I also think that human race has for many centuries or even millenniums
been egocentric. It has reflected not only on everyday life but on scientific
theories. For such a long time it was believed that the Earth is the centre of
our universe, so called geocentric system. Well it isn’t!
Will Mars, even though
it is called the red planet, one day have conditions for human life?
Maybe the better question is has Mars had
conditions for life? In the light of most recent research sent from Curiosity
which explores the red planet seems that in the soil of the planet there is a
large amount of water. Water is tightly connected with the concept of life. Also geologists from the photos sent from spacecraft
that orbited Mars discovered geological structures that provide strong, but not
conclusive evidence that in the past water on Mars were plentiful. It seems that Mars was once a planet of different color.
Can Mars terraform? Yes it can and I hope it
will. That is a plan and a wish of space entusiasts and of those who are
worried for the future of human kind on our planet. I am one of those concerned
enthusiasts.
How much real knowledge do we have on Mars?
A
lot. And it keeps growing every day. At the moment exploring Mars is the focus
of many space agencies, not only NASA and ESA. A book written today on the
subject of Mars could be greatly changed in 2 or 3 years.
What are the biggest difficulties in
exploring other planets?
The
biggest difficulty is that the money that could be used for researches and
developing new technologies which could help people on Earth, is spent on wars.
Simply there is no money for exploring such tiny part of the universe called
the Solar system. Other very important reason is that the travel to the nearest
planets is very risky because todays technology has not progressed enough for
faster travelling.
What do researches of Mars look like?
At
the moment there are a number of missions which explore the surface of Mars. On one side
there are orbiters which circle around the planet and take different kinds of
measurements. Then there are robot-rovers like Curiosity which explore the
surface of mars and give scientists information on chemical contents of the
surface, weather conditions, magnetic field, etc.
You have decided to apply to go to Mars. What does that mean precisely ? What awaits you there?
That
means going to Mars without the possibility of returning to Earth. They
will be the first humans to live and die on another planet. There they can expect everyday struggle for
survival but also an amazing new planet which could give answers to many
questions which tormented scientists from the past until now.
What made you wish to
leave to Mars?
Answer to that question is neither short nor
simple. I want to change the world. I want that people on this planet live
peacefully. I want the wars and the killing of the innocent people to stop, I
want people to stop running after the money. I wish a term of a hungry child
and a greedy rich man is a thing from the distant past. I wish that the leaders
of this world were intelligent people who will use the scarce natural resources
of the tortured mother Earth in a smart way, and who will serve for the good of
the mankind. I want a system of values of the future generations not to be so
distorted the way it is today, where the accent is on collecting material
goods. I wish that people would strive to help their nearest and furthest (not
just people but all living creatures) not to only wish for the newest iPhone or
a Mercedes. I want us to become a civilization which will peacefully explore
the universe a civilization which will not know hunger of any kind but hunger
for knowledge. How is all this connected with the mission to Mars? If I will be chosen my voice would be heard by all the races and all the layers of the
society. The team that will go ‘up’ will live in very scarce conditions. I hope
that that will force those who live in abundance to rethink their system of values.
Are there any fears?
Do you think of leaving the Earth and what does it feel like?
Of course there are fears. Brave men are those
who are afraid but do what they decided to do. When I heard about the mission I
pictured myself on Mars and missing the Earth. On the other hand I have already
moved through 8 countries and I don’t have firm roots anywhere. I think it is
worth leaving the Earth trying to achieve greater and noble goals.
What would, if you go,
your expedition look like?
If you can trust the numbers which I have
recently seen there are over 200 000 people applied for the mission on Mars. There is a high likelihood that I will not be chosen. Whoever goes it will be a
mission without precedence and the future astronauts will have to cope with many
technological, health, psychological and other problems. So good luck to those that will be chosen.
Are there Martians?
No one knows whether they exist. It is the main
focus of the research of Mars. And if there are any I think they are very
simple and not complex organisms. Forget about the little green men bibip!
Why do the often say
‘as if you fell from Mars’?
It is folk saying. Only the people know the
real meaning of the word. But if you would ask the people I believe they would
say ‘just so’.
Do you believe that by
exploring Mars people would discover Earth?
I believe that exploring Mars will help to
better understand conditions of creating the life on Earth. Whatever we
discover on Mars will make our picture of solar system more complete.
Author: Amra Hodžić, 2nd Gymnasium, Osijek, Croatia
© WORLD SPACE WEEK HRVATSKA 2013. Sva prava pridržana. Zabranjeno je kopiranje ili prenošenje cijelog ili dijela intervjua bez pismene dozvole.
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