Elon Musk Sets Mars in Sight: SpaceX to Launch First Starship Missions to Red Planet in 2026

Elon Musk is pushing SpaceX’s Starship toward Mars with uncrewed missions set for 2026. Crewed flights are expected by 2028, marking a significant leap toward a human presence on the Red Planet.

Elon Musk’s Mars Plan Takes Shape

Starting with unmanned Starship missions in 2026, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has unveiled a grand plan to construct a Martian metropolis for humans within the following several decades.

Musk has ambitious goals for Starship, as seen by the fact that he has revealed the ambitious schedule for when the rocket would begin sending missions to Mars. Initial missions will not include any humans:

“The first Starships to Mars will launch in 2 years when the next Earth-Mars transfer window opens. 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.”

Starship’s 2026 Mars Voyage Marks New Era

In 2026, Starship will undertake its maiden voyages to Mars, according to Teslarati, while crewed missions won't start until 2028. Regardless of whether these astronauts really land on Mars, it would be a huge step forward.

The number of journeys between Earth and Mars utilizing Starship will "grow exponentially from there," Musk continued. About twenty years after that, in his opinion, Mars will have a self-sufficient metropolis.

Musk continues by saying:

“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.”

FAA Yet to Approve Starship Test Flights

Despite SpaceX's preparations for what would be the fifth test flight of Starship, the FAA has not yet given the go-ahead for the company to fly. Even though the flight has received approval from the FCC, the FAA is ultimately responsible for giving the go-ahead.