At least as early as 1971 Soviet scientists have suggested that rather than attempting to settle Venus’ hostile surface, humans might attempt to settle the Venerian atmosphere. Protection against cosmic radiation would be provided by the atmosphere above, with shielding mass equivalent to Earth’s.

The colonists would have to take some time to adapt to this new environment. Luckily, there were thousands of trees all around, so obviously, the houses were made of wood. Colonists cut down many of the trees, and replaced them with fields for farmers. The soil was excellent, unlike the New England Colonies.

For starters, the technology needed to colonize the atmosphere of Venus, much less the surface itself, is incredibly complex. It’s very possible that before the century is up we’ll have built self-sustaining cities in the sky or even on the terraformed surface of Venus, and it will truly be the sister planet to Earth.

Europa, the fourth-largest moon of Jupiter, is a subject in both science fiction and scientific speculation for future human colonization. Europa’s geophysical features, including a possible subglacial water ocean, make it a possibility that human life could be sustained on or beneath the surface.

Mercury has a solid, cratered surface, much like the Earth’s moon. Can’t Breathe It – Mercury’s thin atmosphere, or exosphere, is composed mostly of oxygen (O2), sodium (Na), hydrogen (H2), helium (He), and potassium (K).

While planet Saturn is an unlikely place for living things to take hold, the same is not true of some of its many moons. Satellites like Enceladus and Titan, home to internal oceans, could possibly support life.

Mercury rotates relatively slowly, so in order to survive, all you need is just catch the moment when the daytime temperature changes to the nighttime temperature, something comfortable between 800ºF and −290ºF. But anyhow 90 seconds is about how much time you could spend there.

Without holding our breaths, or donning any kind of spacesuit, we can survive for about 80 years… not bad!

Neptune’s lack of Oxygen No other planet has this, including Neptune, which only has trace amounts of oxygen. It has a hydrogen, helium and methane atmosphere. So, it would be impossible for us to breath on the planet Neptune, which is another obstacle for humans living there.

It would be like standing on watery Jell-O and would be incredibly difficult to balance on. So you’d most likely fall on your back or stomach. You still wouldn’t sink in, but now, your whole body would be covered with the liquid mercury. And the longer it stays on your skin, the worse it would get.

Answer: Yes. Mercury is 13.6 times denser than water (Q & A: Liquids more dense than water or alcohol ), so yes you could walk on a swimming pool full of mercury (if you didn’t lose your balance and fall down). But mercury can cause mercury poisoning (Mercury Toxicity ) by being ingested or absorbed through the skin.

What makes Mercury so difficult. First, getting there: “You essentially need three rockets to get to Mercury,” Hauck said: one to get off Earth, one to get from Earth to Mercury and one to carefully land on the planet (because it lacks an atmosphere that can slow down a spacecraft).

From a purely density perspective, yes – you would float on metallic mercury. Mercury has a density (g/cm^3) of 13.5 and the human body (65-80% water) of about 1.0. There is very little friction on a surface of liquid mercury, so standing and much less walking would be a challenge.

It’s never safe to touch mercury. In its liquid metal form, mercury absorbs instantly into the skin; but it also has an extremely high vapor pressure, so an open container of mercury disperses the metal into the air.

+ Is it legal to sell liquid mercury? Mercury is legal for sale and purchase within the United States, with very few restrictions.

liquid hydrogen

Mercury

Lighter liquids (like water or vegetable oil) are less dense than heavier liquids (like honey or corn syrup) so they float on top of the heavier liquids….How Does It Work.