In Protector by Larry Niven, a human protector exterminated the Martians by deflecting an ice asteroid onto a collision course with Mars.
In The Fleet Of Stars, 5, the Nantai etaine mines a lode of water which is sold by a Lunarian organization called a courai.
Mars loses water because molecules escaping into the atmosphere are cracked apart by ultraviolet radiation with the oxygen binding to rocks and the hydrogen escaping into space.
Because the Synesis - the cybercosm-dominated civilization in the inner Solar System - has stopped sending water, the Martians now have four options:
live underground;
leave Mars;
build ships and robots to get ice from the Kuiper Belt;
deal with the Proserpinans.
The fourth option seems best: free human beings together against the cybercosm.
5 comments:
Kaor, Paul!
Both the third and fourth options should be used. I'm sure the Proserpinans smuggled in agents to initiate contact with the Terrans/Lunarians of Mars.
Ad astra! Sean
There are massive quantities of frozen water underground on Mars -- more than any likely settlement there will need for generations.
Kaor, Mr. Stirling!
I knew water exists on Mars but was not sure how much is there. Given water any manned expedition sent there can do many, many of the things needed for living there.
The successes of SpaceX and, so far, the Artemis II mission gives me more hope for the US and Western civilization.
Sh'u Maz! Sean
Also if you wanted to import water to eg: Mars or Venus, there is far more water (as ice) on Europa Ganymede or Calisto than in Earth's oceans.
Kaor, Jim!
I love that idea too! Stirling as the Martians in THE COURTS OF THE CRIMSOM KINGS discovering a "gate" left by the mysterious Lords of Creation, allowing a great river to flow onto Mars.
Sh'u Maz! Sean
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