terraforming
Making planets habitable
Terraforming is the hypothetical process of modifying a planet's atmosphere, temperature, and surface to make it habitable for Earth life.
The concept appears most often in science fiction and speculative discussions about colonizing Mars or other planets: Terraforming Mars could take centuries.
The verb is terraform: We'd need to terraform before establishing permanent settlements.
Gaseous layer around planets
- geologyStudy of Earth's composition
- hydrologyScience of water distribution
- climatePrevailing atmospheric conditions
- biosphereAll life on Earth
geoengineering · crater · volcano · tectonics · magnetosphere · gravity · topography · pressure
Red planet, war deity
- VenusLove goddess, or planet
- exoplanetPlanet outside our system
- interstellarBetween celestial bodies
- FireflyBioluminescent flying beetle
Dune · Asimov · Clarke · worldbuilding · speculative · dystopian · utopian · faster-than-light
Intentional large-scale environmental modification
- bioengineeringEngineering applied to biology
- domesVaulted rounded ceilings
- greenhousesGlass growing buildings
- desalinationExtracting salt from seawater
irrigation · infrastructure · robotics · nanotechnology · megastructures
Range of life forms
- floraPlants of a region
- faunaAnimal life collectively
- ecologyStudy of environmental relations
- symbiosisInterspecies biological interdependence
photosynthesis · habitat · niche · pollination · decomposer · producer · consumer · endemic
Resolved dispute or colony
- pioneersFirst to explore territory
- outpostRemote military station
- expeditionOrganized exploratory journey
- homesteadingSelf-reliant land-based lifestyle
frontier · colony · habitat · biodome · life-support · self-sufficiency · agriculture · hydroponics
Suitability for dwelling
- rewildingRestoring natural ecosystems
- greeningEnvironmental improvement process
- warmingIncreasing in temperature
- oxygenationAdding breathable gas
pressurization · long-term · phased · gradual · irreversible · ethical · hubris
atmosphere
Gaseous layer around planets
- geologyStudy of Earth's composition
- hydrologyScience of water distribution
- climatePrevailing atmospheric conditions
biosphere · geoengineering · crater · volcano · tectonics · magnetosphere · gravity · topography · pressure · temperature
Mars
Red planet, war deity
- VenusLove goddess, or planet
- exoplanetPlanet outside our system
- interstellarBetween celestial bodies
Firefly · Dune · Asimov · Clarke · worldbuilding · speculative · dystopian · utopian · faster-than-light
geoengineering
Intentional large-scale environmental modification
- bioengineeringEngineering applied to biology
- domesVaulted rounded ceilings
- greenhousesGlass growing buildings
desalination · irrigation · infrastructure · robotics · nanotechnology · megastructures
biodiversity
Range of life forms
symbiosis · photosynthesis · habitat · niche · pollination · decomposer · producer · consumer · endemic · conservation
settlement
Resolved dispute or colony
- pioneersFirst to explore territory
- outpostRemote military station
- expeditionOrganized exploratory journey
homesteading · frontier · colony · habitat · biodome · life-support · self-sufficiency · agriculture · hydroponics · closed-loop
habitability
Suitability for dwelling
- rewildingRestoring natural ecosystems
- greeningEnvironmental improvement process
- warmingIncreasing in temperature
oxygenation · pressurization · long-term · phased · gradual · irreversible · ethical · hubris
- sci-fi conceptstime travel, space exploration, faster-than-light, generation ships, multiverse
- sci-fiscience fiction, Star Wars, sci-fi, Blade Runner 2049, aliens
- space explorationrockets, Saturn V, satellites, mission, Falcon Heavy
- space travelspaceship, starship, spacecraft, astronaut, rocket
- speculative fictionsci-fi, science fiction, dystopia, fantasy, futurism
- sandbox gamesMinecraft, building, No Man's Sky, Roblox, creative mode
terraforminggenetic adaptation
Heritable survival-enhancing modification
terraformingecocide
Deliberate devastation of nature
sterilization · desertification · nuclear winter · desolation
terraformingnon-intervention
Policy of staying uninvolved
wilderness preservation · abandonment · letting nature take its course
form, territory, terrace, terrain, territorial, terrestrial, subterranean, terra, Mediterranean