Elon Musk, a man of the people and the world’s richest man, has said that a $100,000 SpaceX trip to Mars will be affordable to “nearly everybody.” Some have pointed out that this price tag is a tad ambitious for the vast majority of Earth-bound humanity, given that many people are now struggling to heat their houses or fill up their petrol tanks. Apart from these remarks from the billionaire’s ivory tower, Musk’s sales pitch to make living and working on Mars sound more appealing may need to be improved.
In an interview with Chris Anderson, the founder and CEO of TED, published on Monday, the founder and CEO of SpaceX discussed one of his favorite topics: a mission to establish a self-sustaining city on Mars. “If relocating to Mars costs $100,000, for example,” Musk added, “I believe practically everybody can work and save and eventually have $100,000 and be able to go to Mars if they choose.” “We want to make it accessible to everybody who wants to go,” said the group.
Many others may choose to pay for their ticket through a sponsorship program or a loan, but Musk predicts that only a small percentage of humankind will desire to make the voyage. Musk estimates that about 1 million people would need to live and work on Mars to fulfill the aim of a self-sustaining metropolis. He aspires to have a fleet of 1,000 Starships capable of delivering 100 or more people to our planetary neighbor every 2.2 years, when the voyage is the most cost-effective.
According to his most recent estimate, issued in March 2022, humanity will first step foot on Mars in 2029, a date that has been pushed back from his previous projection of 2024. If all goes according to plan, Musk’s notion of en masse fleets to Mars might begin in the 2030s. It remains to be seen if SpaceX will be able to achieve this lofty goal. If you want to make history as one of the first humans on Mars, don’t anticipate first-class travel regardless of the precise date.
“Mars will not be luxury, especially at first,” he said. “The sales pitch for travelling to Mars is: ‘It’s risky, it’s confined, you might not make it back, it’s difficult, it’s hard work,’ says the author. “That’s the pitch,” Musk explained. “However,” he said with a giggle, “it will be magnificent.”
