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SpaceX’s Ambitious Mars Mission on the Horizon
Image Caption: SpaceX’s next-generation Starship spacecraft, stacked on its Super Heavy booster, successfully launched during its eighth test on March 6, 2025, from the Boca Chica launch pad in Brownsville, Texas. — Reuters
WASHINGTION: Elon Musk, the founder of SpaceX, announced on Saturday that the company’s colossal Starship rocket is scheduled to depart for Mars at the end of 2026, carrying onto the red planet a Tesla humanoid robot named Optimus. He indicated that human landings could potentially occur as early as 2029.
“Starship will launch towards Mars at the end of next year with Optimus onboard. If all goes smoothly with those landings, human landings could begin as soon as 2029, although 2031 seems more probable,” Musk shared via his social media platform X.
Musk, who also leads Tesla, showcased the Optimus robots at a company event last year and envisions that these robots will eventually perform basic tasks and provide companionship, with a projected retail price between $20,000 and $30,000.
Starship, recognized as the world’s largest and most powerful rocket, is integral to Musk’s vision of establishing a human presence on Mars. Towering at 403 feet (123 meters), it reaches a height about 100 feet above the Statue of Liberty and is designed to be fully reusable in the long run. NASA is also counting on a modified version of Starship as a lunar lander for its Artemis program, which aims to return astronauts to the Moon this decade.
Nonetheless, before SpaceX can advance to these ambitious missions, it must demonstrate that Starship is safe, reliable for crews, and capable of complex in-orbit refueling, which is critical for deep space journeys.
Recent Challenges
This month, SpaceX encountered a setback when a test flight of its Starship prototype ended in a fiery explosion, despite the booster performing as planned.
Shortly after liftoff and separation of the booster, live footage revealed the upper stage spinning out of control before the feed was abruptly lost. Astonishing video captured online showed fiery debris cascading over the Bahamas, marking the eighth uncrewed orbital test for the vehicle.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) stated that SpaceX must conduct an investigation before the rocket can be flown again. Despite these challenges, SpaceX’s "fail fast, learn fast" approach has positioned the company as the leading provider of launch services globally.
However, Musk’s close relationship with former President Donald Trump and his influence over federal regulators have raised eyebrows regarding possible conflicts of interest. During President Joe Biden’s administration, Musk has had several disagreements with the FAA, alleging that they overly regulate SpaceX’s operations in regard to safety and environmental matters. Trump, in his inaugural address, expressed a desire to plant the Stars and Stripes on Mars, indicating his strong interest in space exploration.
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