BOOTS ON MARS IN 2026? Elon Musk says “yes”.

While the timeline for a manned spaceflight to Mars has wavered over the years, SpaceX Founder and CEO, Elon Musk, believes that his aerospace company is within reach of meeting its interplanetary goal in 2026.

- Chris Mellides

Beginning with engine development in 2012, achievements in the years that followed included the development of the first Starship rocket prototype in 2016. This fully reusable two-stage launch vehicle has undergone several improvements and is designed to bus cargo and eventually become a passenger-carrying spacecraft.

Being determined to pave the way for a spacefaring future where Earth’s inhabitants might one day colonize a foreign planet may seem like a plot point stripped from an old science fiction serial, but Musk couldn’t be any more serious in his intent.

In a January 31 interview with Good Time on the Clubhouse audio-chat app, the tech billionaire claimed that the fate of humanity hinges on its ability to achieve multi-planetary status. And that we may be just five-and-a-half years away from making our start toward that reality.

Musk announced in 2017 that a manned spaceflight to the Red Planet would commence in 2024. Adjustments were made to the timeline and the new Starship rocket’s launch date has been moved two years later than Musk had previously proclaimed.

“So, I think, for the first time in the four-and-a-half billion-year history of Earth that [it may be] possible to extend life beyond Earth and make life multi-planetary,” Musk said. “And this window of opportunity may be open for a long time. I hope it is, or it may be open for a short time. And I think it would be wise for us to assume that it’s open for a short time.”