In a recent two-and-a-half-hour conversation regarding space and advanced transportation, Elon Musk gave his opinion on how long it will take humans to land on Mars after approximately twenty seconds of serious silence. The Tesla and SpaceX CEO told podcast host Lex Fridman, “Worst case, ten years.” “We must evolve into a multiplanet species.”
Musk claims that Starship, SpaceX’s reusable rocket that just displayed some steering gear on video, is the most sophisticated rocket ever built and that it will safely transport humans to Mars. Musk, on the other hand, has a history of overpromising and underdelivering. Tesla, his electric vehicle company, just recalled nearly half a million vehicles this week. Despite this, SpaceX has achieved things that its critics believed it couldn’t.
It now sends astronauts to the International Space Station and beyond on a regular basis. And Starship has already landed a hefty NASA contract to land the agency’s astronauts on the Moon, as well as leaving Earth on many occasions — but it hasn’t yet made it into orbit, and most of its flights have ended in spectacular explosions. Musk is also not referring to a ten-year colonization expedition to Mars, but rather a touch-down or exploratory mission.
He claims that cutting costs and reusing parts is the key to making either happen, and that while you can’t now buy a ticket to Mars for even $1 trillion, throwing away any large element of a rocket increases cost significantly. “In principle,” Musk added in the interview, “Starship could accomplish a cost per launch of $1 million, maybe $2 million.” “And we launched almost 100 tons into space, which is insane.” There’s no need to learn any new physics.” Possible? Yes. Probable? The verdict is yet out. However, if Starship continues to meet milestones and earn NASA cash, we may soon have boots on the ground on Mars.
According to The Verge, a Tesla Model Y was “severely damaged” after colliding with an approaching vehicle while purportedly using the controversial Full Self-Driving (FSD) Beta. According to The Verge, the crash could be the first significant occurrence employing FSD, but no one was wounded. According to a firsthand report received by The Verge from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the Model Y “was in FSD Beta mode and while taking a left turn the car went into the incorrect lane,” causing it to collide with “another motorist.”
