5 Unmanned Starship Missions to Mars to Begin Within 2 Years, SpaceX Could Launch Manned Mission in as Early as 4 Years

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2024-09-24

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Space Exploration Technologies Corp (SpaceX) CEO Elon Musk recently posted on the social media platform X, stating that the company plans to complete five unmanned 'Starship' missions to Mars within the next two years.

According to foreign media reports, Musk mentioned that the timeline for a manned mission will depend on the success of the unmanned Starship flights. If the flights succeed and the spacecraft lands safely, manned missions could begin within four years; if they fail, the manned missions will be delayed by two years.

In June of this year (2024), SpaceX launched Starship for its fourth test mission, which successfully orbited the Earth, re-entered the atmosphere, and landed in the Indian Ocean. Musk hopes that through the Starship missions, he can achieve his goal of building a large, multi-purpose spacecraft, with the ambition of sending humans and cargo to the Moon by 2030, eventually reaching Mars.

Additionally, NASA’s Artemis 3 mission, originally planned for late 2025, is now expected to be delayed until September 2026. This mission marks NASA’s first manned lunar landing in half a century.

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