On artificial atmospheres

I happened across this interview of sci-fi/fantasy author Richard K. Morgan. I haven't read any of his books, but he seems to have a strong sense for hard sci-fi. Excerpt:

In Black Man, I posited that one of the things they would be doing is sending Andeans—Andean Native Americans—to Mars. Because one of the things obviously is if you’ve got a very, very thin atmosphere, then guys who are used to living at altitude are going to be genetically predisposed to cope with that better. So in Black Man, the Western world has built its Mars prep camps in the Andes, because you get the altitude there, and also something of the bleak environment these people will be going to. So the idea is you’ve got several generations of grunt labor coming from places like Peru and Bolivia, and they’ve brought their culture with them. So that’s one of the baseline cultures that operates on Mars.

Kinda like how the grunt labor for Himalayas Mountains climbers are local Sherpas who are genetically adapted to the altitude.

In my book Tendrils to the Moon, one of the dangers facing the characters is decompression of the artificial atmospheres that keep them alive. I even mention that the dropping air pressure in one situation is equivalent to the atmosphere in Tibet. Survivable for your average Westerner, but some people do get altitude sickness at those heights.

If you're writing hard sci-fi, you have to consider how artificial atmospheres are maintained. With current technology, a low-pressure atmosphere is easier and less costly to maintain than a high-pressure atmosphere. Therefore high-altitude adaptation is ideal for people living on alien worlds.

You also have to consider the composition of the artificial atmosphere. There is a minimum partial pressure of oxygen that could sustain a colony. That pressure is unique to every individual, and it's the pressure of oxygen in the alveoli in the lungs. If the partial pressure of oxygen in the atmosphere is too low, oxygen is physically incapable of passing through alveoli into the arteries. For most people, that pressure is about two-thirds of the partial pressure of oxygen at sea level on Earth. Furthermore, there also must be a significant trace gas, like nitrogen or argon, present in your artificial atmosphere, since a pure oxygen atmosphere presents a significant fire hazard.

Let me know what you think in the comment section below! I'll reply to you as soon as I can. I invite you to read the first three chapters of Tendrils to the Moon for free, and see if the last 9 chapters are worth your time. The paperback version is on sale at Amazon for $8.99. The ebook is only 99 cents.