After Nasa successfully landed its Curiosity probe on Monday, Britain's Astronomer Royal said he believed it was only a matter of time before an astronaut walked on Mars.
Lord Rees of Ludlow said the US space agency's mission to determine whether the Red Planet could have supported life was the first step in accessing Earth's nearest neighbour.
He said the exploration project could mark the start of the "post-human era" despite the risks associated with travelling into the solar system.
"It is foolish to claim, as some do, that mass emigration into space offers escape from Earth’s problems," he said, writing in the Times.
"But I believe, and hope, that some people living now will walk on Mars. Moreover, a century or two from now, small groups of intrepid adventurers may be living there or perhaps on asteroids quite independently from Earth."
Lord Rees predicted a "dramatic cultural and technological evolution" on the planet and beyond as scientists learn more about Mars.
"Perhaps the cosmos teems with life; on the other hand, our Earth could be unique among the billions of planets that surely exist," he added.
"That may be disappointing but would have its upside: it would entitle us to be less cosmically modest. Our tiny planet could then be the most important place in the galaxy. It could perhaps even be a seed from which life could spread through the entire galaxy.
"We may learn this century whether biological evolution is unique to our “pale blue dot”, or whether the wider cosmos teems with life — even with intelligence. As Curiosity trundles through Martian craters, we hope for some early clues."
Nasa's car-sized robot has the capacity to take samples and record the composition of rocks as well as carry out tests to establish the elements that make up the landscape.
Announcing the success of the mission, Charles Bolden, Nasa administrator, said it would "blaze a trail for human footprints on Mars".
The programme follows a doomed attempt to test for life on Mars by a British-led team of scientists in 2003.
Professor Colin Pillinger led the Beagle 2 mission but the probe was lost on landing on Christmas Day.
He said he had been "annoyed" to see the resources invested by Nasa compared to the modest crew behind his attempt.
Writing in the Sun, he said: "Am I disappointed to see Nasa doing the experiments we had hoped to do?
"About as disappointed as an Olympic athlete who gets to London 2012 after years of training only to pull up with a hamstring injury at the first hurdle."
Addressing the question of whether Curiosity was worth its £1.6 billion price tag, he said the skills gained by those developing the probe were priceless.
"Where would this generation be without the space programme? People wouldn't be watching the Olympics on the other side of the world," he said.
"And, of course, there is the hope that Curiosity will find the answer to that philosophical question – are we alone in the universe?"
