SpaceX founder Elon Musk has announced that his company’s Starship rocket will be heading to Mars by the end of next year. This comes as SpaceX investigates several recent explosions that occurred during flight tests. Musk also mentioned that human landings on Mars could happen as early as 2029, although he believes 2031 is more likely. The Starship, which stands at 123 meters, is crucial to Musk’s ambitions for colonizing Mars. However, it has experienced multiple failures during tests, with rockets exploding minutes after launch in two separate incidents this year.

SpaceX stated that they will review the data to determine the root cause of the latest explosion, which happened after several engines were lost. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) also mentioned that an investigation must be conducted before SpaceX can fly again. NASA hopes to utilize a modified version of the Starship as a human lunar lander for its Artemis missions to return to the Moon. Musk envisions the rocket system as one day taking humans not only to the Moon but also to Mars, making humanity a multi-planetary species.

In addition, Musk revealed that the first Mars mission will carry Tesla’s humanoid robot “Optimus,” which was showcased to the public last year. Musk envisions the robot being capable of performing everyday tasks, with a cost between $20,000 and $30,000. On Friday, SpaceX launched its Falcon 9 rocket to transport a crew to the International Space Station (ISS) as part of a plan to return two astronauts home. However, due to technical issues with the experimental spacecraft they arrived on, which was built by Boeing, the astronauts, Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, have been on the ISS for over nine months instead of the intended eight days.

Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cx2g88y52y8o