Elon Musk’s SpaceX is making strides towards interplanetary travel, highlighted by a recent video showcasing the Starship launch system and its progress at Starbase. Musk reaffirmed his commitment to establishing a self-sustaining civilization on Mars, envisioning a future where humanity becomes multi-planetary. The successful ‘catching’ of the rocket booster in October 2024 was also celebrated by Google CEO Sundar Pichai.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has reignited excitement around his company’s plan to start interplanetary travel. Musk has once again captivated the global imagination by sharing a new video showcasing the Starship launch system. Elon Musk shared a video on social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter) in which Musk can been seen showcasing the launch system to Starship and said, “Starship will take humanity to Mars”.

Elon Musk shares timeline for Mars travel

The video of Starship shared by Elon Musk is filled at SpaceX’s Starbase facility and it highlights the progress in the production and testing of Starship. Musk has also emphasised in the past that each launch is a step toward building a self-sustaining civilization on Mars, a goal he described as essential for the long-term survival of humanity.In the same video an X User named Sanket asked Musk, “Hopefully in our lifetime we see humans settle on Mars”.To this Elon Musk gave a one-word reply “Yes”. This means that the SpaceX is working really hard to make the travel to Mars a reality soon.

SpaceX aims to launch around 1,000 to 2,000 Starships every two year. The company plans to transport people and cargo in order to establish a permanent settlement on the planet. Musk also believes that Mars is a backup for civilisation in case a catastrophic events on Earth.

SpaceX created history

SpaceX created history last year with towering almost 400 feet (121 meters), the empty Starship blasted off at 7:25 am CT (4:55 IST) from SpaceX’s Boca Chica, Texas launch facilities. In the second stage, the Super Heavy booster separated from the Starship at an altitude of roughly 70 km to begin its return to land.The rocket’s Super Heavy booster re-lit three of its 33 Raptor engines to slow its speedy descent back to the launch site, as it targeted the launch pad and tower it had blasted off from. The 233 foot (71 metres)-tall Super Heavy booster fell into the launch tower’s enclosing arms, hooking itself in place by tiny, protruding bars under the four forward grid fins.Company employees erupted in joy, jumping and pumping their fists into the air as the stainless steel booster slowly descended into the launch tower’s arms. NASA also joined in the celebration, with Administrator Bill Nelson extending his congratulations.