How SpaceX is Bringing the Future Now

A vacation to Mars may not be that far off

Originally published on October 2, 2016

It’s happening, people. It’s really, really happening: there is a public grand plan as to how people (not astronauts, regular people!) will be able to take a trip to Mars and there is working technology to back it up. Let me explain…

If you haven’t heard of the company SpaceX, they are a company that designs and tests spacecraft and rockets. It was created with the ultimate goal of getting people able to live on other planets. They have popped up in the news recently because of the exciting things they have been doing – along with a talk by CEO Elon Musk in which he shares his plan on how we will get humans to Mars.

You can’t launch any people into space without a rocket. Well, SpaceX has been working on a rocket called Raptor and just this week had a successful test launch. Now that SpaceX has a working rocket, Musk was able to publicly reveal the details of the Mars plan. Here are the highlights:  

Using roughly 40 of these Raptor rockets, SpaceX will be able to launch their methane-fueled spacecraft called the Interplanetary Transport System. This ship will be able to carry 100 tons of supplies and people to Mars; the ship will also contain much fun and entertainment for the passengers. What’s the cost of a little vacation to Mars? As of right now, $10 billion. However, Musk wants to get that to drop to $100,000. Like with anything, however, we can predict that the price will lower as the decades go on. The spaceships will be able to be reused and sent back to Earth because SpaceX has designed them to have reusable parts with a system of refueling during the trip to and from Earth.

In our lifetimes, we will be able to see man make the next giant leap into the future. I can’t tell you how excited that makes me. I won’t pretend to understand all the science and math behind it all. Space has never been more than a casual hobby of mine. Some people with a little more experience and understanding think there are flaws in the plan and it won’t work and the whole notion of getting people to Mars within the next decade is ridiculous. There are other plans and other companies who could achieve this first. Maybe none of this will work out at all. Maybe exploring our solar system will keep falling down the list of priorities for countries around the world, including our own. I think space needs to hold a little more importance, especially at the rate we are making our planet uninhabitable. My opinion carries little weight as I have little authority, but those who have dedicated their lives to these fields would back me up, like Elon Musk.

I will not be saving up hundreds of thousands of dollars to take a trip on the Interplanetary Transport System. I will, however, be watching eagerly from the homeland as mankind takes its first real steps towards that sci-fi future many a nerd dreams about.