Andy Weir explains why the moon will be colonized but Mars won't
Andy Weir
Andy Weir   author of sci-fi blockbuster "The Martian"  is publishing a novel about the moon  "Artemis"  on November 14.
 Weir  told Business Insider  he 's convinced humans will colonize the moon before Mars because it has one thing the red planet doesn't: an economic rationale.
 The author  says Elon Musk's and SpaceX's plan to colonize Mars before the moon is not realistic.
 Andy Weir   author of "The Martian"  a realistic tale of survival in space  is about to release  his  second and highly anticipated novel  "Artemis".
In  Weir 's typical style  the novel â which goes on sale on November 14 â is wildly entertaining and far-fetched  but stays surprisingly believable by leaning heavily on real-life science and engineering.
Business Insider spoke with  Weir  about the book's genesis  why he thinks humanity will colonize the moon first  his major criticism of Elon Musk's and SpaceX's plans to inhabit Mars  and why he'd never visit Artemis if he could.
 ANDY WEIR : I wanted to write a story about the first human settlement somewhere other than Earth. And I just really think that's going to be the moon. That'll definitely be the first place that we colonize outside of Earth.
[TGT]    author of sci-fi blockbuster "The Martian"  is publishing a novel about the moon  "Artemis"  on November 14.
  [TGT] told Business Insider   [TGT]  's convinced humans will colonize the moon before Mars because it has one thing the red planet doesn't: an economic rationale.
 The author  says Elon Musk's and SpaceX's plan to colonize Mars before the moon is not realistic.
  [TGT]    author of "The Martian"  a realistic tale of survival in space  is about to release  his  second and highly anticipated novel  "Artemis".
In  Weir 's typical style  the novel â which goes on sale on November 14 â is wildly entertaining and far-fetched  but stays surprisingly believable by leaning heavily on real-life science and engineering.
Business Insider spoke with  Weir  about the book's genesis  why he thinks humanity will colonize the moon first  his major criticism of Elon Musk's and SpaceX's plans to inhabit Mars  and why he'd never visit Artemis if he could.
 ANDY WEIR : I wanted to write a story about the first human settlement somewhere other than Earth. And I just really think that's going to be the moon. That'll definitely be the first place that we colonize outside of Earth.