In a move to bolster space exploration, billionaire Elon Musk has announced that his company, SpaceX, is all set to launch its first uncrewed starship to Mars in two years. Musk announced through his X handle that the launch will take place when the next Earth-Mars transfer window opens.

He confirmed that if things go well, the first crewed flights will take off in four years. "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," Musk wrote in the X post.

"Flight rate will grow exponentially from there, with the goal of building a self-sustaining city in about 20 years. Being multiplanetary will vastly increase the probable lifespan of consciousness, as we will no longer have all our eggs, literally and metabolically, on one planet," the Space X CEO added.

Previous claims of Musk

The timelines have been prepared with respect to Musk's previous announcement of April 2024, where he claimed that the first uncrewed starship will be launched to Mars in five years and the crewed flights in seven years. 

first uncrewed Starship to Mars
Image Source: Space.com

The SpaceX starship survived a blazing return from space, achieving a breakthrough landing demonstration in the Indian Ocean earlier in June this year. The rocket completed a full-time mission around the Earth in its first attempt.

Musk is optimistic in his approach to developing a large, multipurpose next-generation spacecraft that will have the capability to take people to the Moon and ultimately to the red planet.

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