5 things you need to know about the united Arab Emirates’ new plan to terraform Mars
- The UAE isn’t just aiming for a one-way trip. Its ambitious 100-year project envisions building the first fully sustainable human settlement on the Red Planet by 2117—complete with a dome-covered city that recycles 99% of its water.
- This isn't science fiction. The united Mars project actually plans to use a giant magnetic field to protect the colony from deadly solar radiation, a science-backed theory that could make the planet habitable for the first time.
- The secret ingredient is sandstorms. UAE scientists are experimenting with “Martian concrete” made from simulated Red Planet dust and a special binding agent, which could allow settlers to 3D-print entire neighborhoods on site.
- You can already start training. The united Arab Emirates has opened a dedicated “Mars Science City” in the desert—a $140 million simulated habitat where volunteers live for months to test the psychological and physical toll of isolation.
- The world’s richest space gamble. With oil money funding the research, experts warn the project could cost more than the combined budgets of NASA and SpaceX, but the UAE says the spin-off technologies will revolutionize water conservation on Earth first.