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SpaceX plans to send uncrewed Starships to Mars in 2026 to test landing reliability.
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Crewed missions to Mars are expected to follow in 2030, with the goal of building a self-sustaining city.
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SpaceX’s Starship spacecraft is designed to be reusable and multipurpose, carrying cargo and crew to destinations beyond Earth’s orbit.
SpaceX is gearing up for its most ambitious project yet: sending uncrewed Starships to Mars within the next two years. Elon Musk, the company’s founder and CEO, revealed the plan on social media, outlining the timeline for the first missions to the Red Planet. These initial tests will be crucial in determining the reliability of landing on Mars.
If successful, SpaceX plans to follow up with crewed missions in 2030, which could pave the way for the creation of a self-sustaining city on Mars within the next two decades. Musk’s vision is not just to send astronauts on a short trip but to build an entire city on another 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
