„Ich glaube, da ist Leben.“ „Heute“: Der Wettlauf, einen Menschen auf den Mars zu bringen – in Bildern

From the article:

“Being multiplanetary will vastly increase the probable lifespan of consciousness, as we will no longer have all our eggs, literally and metabolically, on one planet.”

Well, is that really the plan? Do we expect Mars to be habitable? Is that because we expect the sun to get hotter and hotter and burn Earth to a crisp, allowing the privileged few to make a spacerun for Mars to survive? But once they get there, will it even be habitable?

I thought the original idea in traveling to Mars wants to determine whether we were, in fact, alone in the universe. That remains unanswered, but no longer seems to be the focus.

What about the possibility of mining Mars for valuable minerals? I don’t believe any have been identified so far, so is that viable either?

TLDR: is there any legitimate purpose in traveling to Mars and does it make economic sense?