Alien Invasion 101
Imagine you are part of a large interstellar federation that is looking to expand its influence. Imagine that you have recently discovered a small populated planet that is ripe for the picking. That planet is called Earth. How would you proceed?
There are several reasons why an alien species would choose to leave their home planet and colonize Earth. The aftermath of a great war, pollution on a global scale, over population, dwindling natural resources or just simply the expansion of its borders are a few of the possibilities. As there are far more uninhabitable planets in comparison to those that can support life the Earth could potentially be a valuable target. But will they come to conquer, trade or mine resources? Presented here are five possible scenarios and the likelihood that they would happen. Each scenario is broken down and graded on several categories (A = best, E = worst) from the invaders perspective.
Colonization - Trade
The first potential way for an alien species to colonize part of Earth would be to offer advanced technology to governments in exchange for land. Even outdated alien technology would be eagerly sought after by humans. With a large number of countries interested it could potentially erupt into a bidding war as countries vie for advanced weapon systems.
However one large disadvantage would be in speciesism (effectively racism) displayed by some humans towards their alien neighbors. Furthermore there could potentially be ongoing payments required by the human population. Although this type of colonization would be easier and less drastic than other options listed here it does nevertheless has on-going diplomatic issues and costs.
Colony size | - E |
Initial Casualties | - A |
Ongoing Casualties | - B |
Initial Cost | - B |
Ongoing Cost | - D |
Colonization - Threat
For a smaller colony there is the option to invade a country and enforce a permanent evacuation (to surrounding countries) of all humans within a set time period. Any nation unwilling to cooperate with these demands would have one or more of its cities neutralized via orbital bombardment. This is potentially the easiest and cheapest of the three colonization options in the short term. However the cost rises dramatically over the longer term as governments and resistance groups sabotage and disrupt the new colony. The ongoing disruption makes this scenario a less likely invasion option.
Colony size | - D |
Initial Casualties | - B |
Ongoing Casualties | - D |
Initial Cost | - C |
Ongoing Cost | - D |
Colonization - Neutralization
The neutralization option is one of the more difficult scenarios to implement successfully as the surface of the Earth must still remain habitable for colonization. Typically such a scenario would start with the bombing of major population centers. Although over half of the human population could be eradicated via orbital bombardment of towns and cities it still leaves a large number of humans still alive.
It is at this stage the battle would evolve into a long and drawn out ground war. No humans should be left alive so that resistance cells would not hamper the on-going safety of the colony. However the amount of resources to do this is staggering. A more realistic option is to eliminate the majority of the population coupled with the destruction of all essential industries and support systems. This would effectively push the human race back to the stone age and force the indigenous population to concentrate on surviving rather than fighting a war. Furthermore bordered safe zones could be created around the colony to ensure the safety of its citizens. Scheduled culls of the humans would be required to keep their population from growing and interfering with the colony.
Colony size | - A |
Initial Casualties | - B |
Ongoing Casualties | - C |
Initial Cost | - E |
Ongoing Cost | - D |
Resource Harvesting - Moon
Imagine the following scenario:
A large oil company has discovered several new oil fields in the South Pacific. Plans for offshore drilling are underway however they need to use a nearby island (called Alpha Site) as a base of operations. Investigations have shown a primitive tribe on one of the other nearby islands however they have no dependence on Alpha Site. In fact they do not even travel to it.
This is a very plausible scenario which could be applied to our moon. We have no dependence on it and with the exception of space probes have not visited it since 1972. There would be no reason why an alien species could not start strip mining the moon. However this scenario is unlikely as there are many uninhabitable moons and planets which would mean it simply would be easier to mine closer to home rather than some far-flung star system.
Colony size | - A |
Initial Casualties | - A |
Ongoing Casualties | - A |
Initial Cost | - B |
Ongoing Cost | - B |
Resource Harvesting - Earth
The Earth has a lot of natural resources both mineral, organic and biological. This scenario is very similar to the "Colonization - Threat" option but instead of occupying a country, crucial mineral deposit sites would be occupied. The disadvantage is that a large number of sites would have to be guarded if a worldwide strip mining operation was to proceed.
Colony size | - D |
Initial Casualties | - B |
Ongoing Casualties | - D |
Initial Cost | - B |
Ongoing Cost | - D |
Resource Harvesting - Humans
If Hollywood movies are to be believed human beings can and would be readily harvested by alien species. Whether this is true or not the logistics of it are staggering. It would not be possible to destroy major population centers without killing the one resource you are trying to harvest. The best option would be to engage in a ground war and start harvesting this way. However this would result in a long drawn-out and costly operation.
Colony size | - B |
Initial Casualties | - C |
Ongoing Casualties | - C |
Initial Cost | - D |
Ongoing Cost | - E |
Conclusion
From the six options presented here the scores have been tabulated and presented in the above graph. Not surprisingly the strip mining of the moon comes in at number one. However the top two Earth invasion plans are the "Colonization - Trade" and "Colonization - Neutralization" options. Interestingly they present the two most extreme cases of invasion. Either a friendly diplomatic agreement sharing technology or an all out extermination. So should we be concerned? There is no reason to suspect that an alien species will be hostile and attempt to invade. But just remember that although we think of ourselves as wanting peace, our history tells another story.
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