Erickson_2004

Copyright © 2004 Bryan F. Erickson. Published by the Mars Society with permission.

 

THE EXPORT ECONOMY OF A MARS SETTLEMENT

 

Bryan F. Erickson

 

ABSTRACT

 

The rise of a settlement on Mars, from a nucleus of a permanent exploration outpost, will require a transition from government-backed space agency organization and funding to the creation of a true on-site economy including income from exports to Earth, to fund the imports and continued expansion of a settlement. One ideal form of asset for interplanetary export is intellectual property, which can form the basis of a strategy for rapidly initiated return on investment between the planets.