How close are we to building cities on Mars and bases on the Moon? The answer may arrive sooner than you think. Elon Musk is committed to planting cities on Mars. And when it comes to the Moon, Musk feels we should already have had a lunar base a long time ago.
Cities on Mars are serious business. Musk plans to start work on them in only four years. Yes, Musk intends to launch his first cargo mission to Mars in 2022, “putting in place initial power, mining, and life support infrastructure.” And he plans four Mars missions in 2024, two cargo and two crew. Says SpaceX, that second wave of missions will build “a propellant depot and” prepare “for future crew flights.” What’s more, “The ships from these initial missions will also serve as the beginnings of our first Mars base, from which we can build a thriving city and eventually a self-sustaining civilization on Mars.”
The key to Musk’s Mars plan is a whole new rocket and spaceship, the BFR rocket and the BFS spaceship. The Big F*king Rocket and its Big F*king Spaceship. With the highest thrust-to-weight-ratio engine ever made, and a pressurized area larger than that of an Airbus A380 in 48 meters of full length, the BFS is designed to safely carry 100+ people per flight to cities in space. The BFR will be the most powerful rocket ever built and the BFS will be the first space ship with the elbow room and amenities of a cruise liner. But when will the BFR and the BFS be ready to launch?
Right now, SpaceX appears to be secretively manufacturing major BFR components like its huge, carbon-fiber fuel tanks in a massive, temporary tent in the harbor of Los Angeles. In other words, SpaceX appears to be racing to complete its first BFR even before the permanent factory for BFR production is built.
What is happening in that secretive SpaceX tent? How realistic is Musk’s Mars plan? And what’s happening with the hardware with which Musk wants to achieve his goals? How close are the BFR and the BFS to flight? How close are Elon Musk’s dreams to materializing as realities? Please stay tuned.