Uh, Folks, more than Humans will have to be transported to a new colony.
An entire ecosystem will have to be transported, too.
That means transporting life forms other than Humans.
Oh, I agree.
Colony is getting a bit ahead of it all tho.
There have been colonial habitat experiments done on this planet tho that explored the flora and fauna needed for survival.
Its not as diverse as you might think.
Plus the results are based on relative short-term experiments in pristine conditions.
If a seal ruptured in the Biolab, the plants and animals didn't die like what happened to Mark Watney. If the rivet seam on a panel rusted out, they just ordered a new panel and rivets.
On another world, there is no supply except what you either send there or take with you.
You can't call and order a pack of rivets for delivery.
If the organic matter in the growning substrate (soil) dies, and you don't have replacement organic matter you die.
The dirt in your garden is composed of organic material that comes from the living process of the Earth in Earth-like conditions. Some might be able to be grown in a lab but it would be a serious scientific endeavor to get just right for optimal growing conditions. Plus, you would need to mass produce those organics in an abundance to satisfy the plant growth needs.
Then, for each animal, insect and bacteria on site, you would require support.
However, in the short-term, habitats could be made with support for establishing scientific knowledge and figuring out what is needed and what isn't. No need to try to set up a complete ecology.
If it works out, ecological additions might be added slowly over time to accomodate a diverse bioshpere. We couln't take a herd of cows to Mars but in a few hundred years, with the right science, we might have a herd of cows on Mars.
Then you have to remember that only the initial cows will be Earth cows.
Any cow born on Mars will be a different animal because it will be gestated on a planet that has significantly different conditions than Earth, including gravity.
The Tomato plant will have different growing patters than one on Earth.
Less sunlight (unless it will always have grow lamps), less gravity, less pollination, hell that Martian Tomato may not look or taste like a tomato. It might even be deadly or poisonous? It might have spores that disolve habitat seals. There is no science on it because we haven't done the science because we haven't been there to do the science.
Water is water, right....wrong.
There is water right here on this planet that you can't drink.
There's sea water, heavy water, water from reactors.
Finding water on a planet or moon isn't enough.
We need to find out if that water is safe for consumption.
Lets say the water is salty. Sea water can be refined to drink.
Will we have water refinery equipment and chemicals available to treat enough water for the explorer team's stay duration?
Can we currently drink reactor water, even after processing?
We might reintroduce it thru dilution but can we take water from a reactor cooling pool, process it and drink it?
To dilute, requires an abundant supply of fresh clean water.
Think about air.
Many people think we breathe oxygen but we don't.
We breathe nitrogen with oxygen in it (and other gases).
An atmosphere prosessor in a habitat doesn't just need O2, without nitrogen it would be deadly. The processor mixes components to make breathable air.
Yes, you would send O2 but you also need to send nitrogen and other gasses as well.
The BIG thing is gravity.
Gravity is one of the least considered factors in building an off-world ecology. It effects everything. From how the atmosphere layers to how things grow. It even effects the physicas of structural integrity. How things are built on Earth is much different than how they need to be built on Mars.
How things are on Mars is very different than how things are on a moon or an asteroid from a gravity point of reference.
Then you have dust issues.
I read a while ago that the astronauts that landed and spent time on the Moon said there was dust on everything, everywhere.
On Earth, dust acts differently because of atmospheric differences and gravity. On Mars or an asteroid, it will act different still.
Decay is yet another thing to consider.
On Earth, things decay a certain way. There are studies that examine the different ways and rates different things decay.
Decay rates are going to be different on different worlds.
Some places, they won't be any significant decay, other places, the decay may be fast and have unpredicatable results. What if something dies and the decay process causes an explosive reaction that light the methane on fire?
Without going there and doing the science to find out what happens, we will never know.
Might as well just put yer head in the sand.