Jane Edwards
SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has said he wants to send at least two cargo ships to Mars by 2022 in an effort to determine hazards, establish life-support infrastructure and identify potential water resources, CNBC reported Friday.
Musk plans to carry out that plan through the development of a 42-engine rocket system called BFR designed to transport approximately 100 people to the red planet.
“I feel fairly confident we can build the ship and be ready for the launch in five years,†Musk said Friday at the 2017 International Astronautical Congress in Australia.
He said the spacecraft will transport the first humans and supplies to facilitate the establishment of a base for a proposed expansion on the planet by 2024.
Musk added that the company aims to carry out 30 space launches in 2018.
Lockheed Martin also unveiled at the IAC event its plans for the Mars Base Camp concept that seeks to facilitate scientific exploration of Mars and land astronauts on the planet in about 10 years.
