The Tyranny of Gravity

This procedurally generated depiction of a future Mars colony is inspired by the cover of 'The Tyranny of Distance' by Geoffrey Blainey.

Blainey describes the first European fleet set sail for Australia in the summer of 1787:

"The course they had followed from England amounted to some 14,000 miles and had taken eight months and a week, of which actual sailing time was six months."

Jammed into cramped quarters for six months? That's right on the money for the average time it takes NASA to send a robot to Mars – about six to eight months.

We can't be that far off the space-faring equivalent of the Barque sailing ships that journeyed to Australia in 1787. If the British could sail an equivalent distance in the 18th century and start a new settlement, shouldn't it be possible for us to create a Martian settlement today?