Presents an updated edition of the Mars Direct plan to make the first human landing on Mars in an era when the American space program and private companies like SpaceX are racing to send astronauts to Mars. In the tradition of successful explorers, Zubrin calls for a travel-light and live-off-the-land approach to Martian settlement. He explains how scientists can use present-day technology to send humans to Mars, produce fuel and oxygen on the planet’s surface with its own natural resources, build bases and communities, and one day, terraform—or alter the atmosphere of the planet in order to pave the way for sustainable life.