The novel “Red Mars” by Kim Stanley Robinson was published for the first time in 1992. It won the Nebula and BSFA awards. It’s the first novel in the Mars trilogy.

In 2026 the Ares expedition is launched to Mars with a hundred pioneers to create an outpost in preparation for a future colonization. The mission is mainly supported by the USA and Russia and the pioneers are supposed to proceed with the operations following the directives that come from the Earth but even before reaching the red planet disagreements and differences of opinion begin.

The main reasons for discussion come from one of the key decisions for the future of Mars: its terraforming. Some believe that the planet should be kept as it is, others think it’s fair to transform it to make colonization easier. Things get complicated when new settlers start arriving.