Despite all the Twitter news of Elon Musk’s purchase of Twitter which will mean he should focus less on his other companies, such as electric vehicle maker Tesla and aerospace company SpaceX aims to build a fleet of 1,000 Starships over the course of 10 years in order to send 1 million people to Mars by 2050. “In order to create a self-sustaining city on Mars, I think you will need something on the order of a thousand ships,” says SpaceX founder Elon Musk. He believes a million people are needed on the Red Planet to ensure there is enough population to work on everything that is necessary to survive and create a self-sustaining city.
This would be an incredible feat, as it would more than double the current number of operational spacecraft. The implications of this are far-reaching, as it would dramatically increase the amount of space exploration and open up new possibilities for human settlement in the solar system.
SpaceX has been steadily increasing its production capacity over the past few years, as it ramps up to meet the growing demand for its affordable launch services. This includes new manufacturing facilities and more advanced technologies, such as 3D printing. But even with these improvements, many have questioned whether SpaceX is actually capable of building 1000 spacecraft within a reasonable timeframe.
As Musk explained during a presentation at the International Astronautical Congress (IAC) in Adelaide, Australia: “The purpose of establishing colonies would be to create an environment that enables greater expansion into the universe… To ensure all kinds of creative thought can occur, we must first use Mars or some other location as a base to expand further out into the solar system.”
“This is really an important thing for the future of humanity,” he continued. “I think it’s essential that we establish a self-sustaining city on Mars as soon as possible. And I think that goal could be achieved within our lifetime.”
SpaceX isn’t the only company working on plans to colonize Mars. Blue Origin, founded by Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, is also developing a spacecraft that it intends to use for regular trips to the red planet. However, Blue Origin has yet to release any concrete details about its timeline or how many vehicles it plans to build.
What sets SpaceX apart is its ambition and focus on building an expansive fleet of starships. If successful, this would not only help make space travel more affordable and accessible, but it would also lay the groundwork for future exploration efforts. Many experts believe that establishing a permanent human presence on Mars is the first step toward exploring other parts of our solar system – and eventually venturing to distant star systems as well.
Whether SpaceX will be able to achieve its ambitious goals remains to be seen. But if anyone can overcome the technological hurdles involved in building 1000 starships, Musk and his team are certainly up for the challenge!
