Elon Musk has announced that SpaceX’s Starship rocket is set to embark on a Mars mission by late 2026, carrying Tesla’s humanoid robot, Optimus.
He further suggested that human missions could begin as early as 2029, though 2031 remains a more probable timeline.
“Starship will head to Mars at the end of next year with Optimus onboard. If those landings are successful, human missions could start as soon as 2029, though 2031 is more likely,” Musk shared on his social media platform, X.
The massive Starship rocket, the most powerful ever built, plays a central role in Musk’s ambition to establish a human presence on Mars.
Meanwhile, NASA is counting on a modified version of Starship as a lunar lander for its Artemis program, which aims to return astronauts to the Moon within this decade.
Before these ambitious missions can proceed, SpaceX must demonstrate that Starship is reliable, crew-safe, and capable of crucial in-orbit refuelling—an essential step for deep-space travel.
Earlier this month, SpaceX faced a significant hurdle when its latest Starship test flight ended in an explosion, despite the booster successfully returning in its orbital test.
It was a near repeat of a previous attempt. Moments after liftoff and booster separation, the upper stage began tumbling uncontrollably before the live video feed abruptly cut out.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has mandated an investigation