Elon Musk has shared a detailed timeline for humanity’s journey to establish a colony on Mars. In a recent social media update, Musk announced that SpaceX plans to launch the first uncrewed Starship to Mars within two years, coinciding with the next Earth-Mars transfer window. This initial mission will test the spacecraft’s ability to land safely on the Red Planet.
If the uncrewed mission succeeds, Musk projects that crewed flights to Mars could begin in four years. He envisions a rapid increase in flight frequency, with the goal of building a self-sustaining city on Mars within 20 years. Musk believes that becoming a multi-planetary species will greatly enhance the longevity of human civilization, ensuring that not all our resources and existence are confined to a single planet.
The first Starships to Mars will launch in 2 years when the next Earth-Mars transfer window opens.
These will be uncrewed to test the reliability of landing intact on Mars. If those landings go well, then the first crewed flights to Mars will be in 4 years.
Flight rate will… https://t.co/ZuiM00dpe9
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 7, 2024
Musk also discussed the economic hurdles of making Mars colonization feasible. Currently, it costs approximately one billion dollars per ton to deliver payloads to Mars. He aims to reduce this cost to USD 100,000 per ton, which would require a ten-thousandfold improvement in technology. Despite the challenges, Musk remains optimistic about overcoming these obstacles.
In a separate post, Musk highlighted SpaceX’s achievement in developing the first fully reusable rocket stage and making spaceflight economically viable, which he considers crucial for achieving their ambitious space goals.