The Martian Lie

Prologue - Genesis Part II

In the beginning, the scientists created mirrors in the heavens to turn Mars to Earth. Mars was red and empty, but certainly not formless. Red cliffs, plains, and valleys stretched as far as the eye could see. Beautiful in its own way. But the scientists had another vision, and it was cast out over the planet and into the future. It would be habitable - Earthlike.

The mirrors reflected the light of the sun. The sun, strong on Earth, could not reach the red sister planet without help. The heat began to melt the ice caps on the planet, releasing carbon dioxide. This went on for one hundred years – the first century.

The next generation of scientists set out to create an atmosphere. They set up factories that would release greenhouse gases. These gases, so potent on earth, worked to their advantage on Mars. Soon, there was a protective barrier between the land and space to keep oxygen in and the universe out. This took one hundred years – the second century.

Over the course of the third century, the water from the polar ice caps filled in the low-lying areas. Higher ground became continents. Valleys and canyons became rivers and lakes. The new scientists watched the work of their ancestors go according to plan. On schedule, they sent microbial life and plants to inhabit the red planet. One day, their children's children would breathe the air there if they did their work correctly.

Slowly but surely, the temperature began to rise. The air, not yet breathable, was less toxic. Life on Earth was becoming more precarious than had ever been imagined. Humanity concluded they should send some of their people there ahead of schedule, just in case. Domes with plant life and artificial atmosphere became lifeboats for mankind. These first settlers found it easy to adjust to life in the domes. The day was only slightly longer than they were used to. They settled into a routine not unlike theirs on Earth. A fourth century went by as they continued their work.

The water began to teem with living creatures. Birds flew above in the sky. Life on the planet multiplied. A fifth century of days and nights went by.

Finally, six hundred years after the mirrors were first placed in the sky, it was time to send mammals to the planet. Beasts, big and small, were sent first experimentally. In a few short years, it was determined life could survive outside the domes on Mars. The scientists' work was finished. Men and women came out of the domes or migrated from Earth on ships. They populated the planet; once red, now blue and green. Aside from the smaller circumference and closer horizon, there was no discernible difference between Mars and areas of Earth.

The people began to live. They took all they had learned from their long history on Earth and created a utopia, a lifeboat filled with the best and brightest of mankind. These superior ones would rule over those left on Earth. Humanity existed in two places and would be much less likely to go extinct. Earth would recuperate with less of them inhabiting her; humans' damage was extensive but not irreparable. At last, they could rest.

The scientists were successful. Mars was Earth. But Gods they were not, and it all seemed just a little bit manufactured.