SpaceX is planning a major pivot from Mars to Moon, Elon Musk said on Sunday. Instead of planning human missions to Mars, Musk is now concentrating on building
self-growing permanent human settlement on the Moon. "For those unaware, SpaceX has already shifted focus to building a self-growing city on the Moon, as we can potentially achieve that in less than 10 years, whereas Mars would take 20+ years," Musk wrote on X. He said that logistics played a key role behind his decision. Musk pointed out that the Moon offers a faster and more practical path to achieving human establishments on surfaces beyond Earth. Missions to Mars are limited by orbital windows, while lunar launches are far more frequent. "It is only possible to travel to Mars when the planets align every 26 months," Musk said. "We can launch to the Moon every 10 days," he added. The shift signals a change of strategy at SpaceX, which works closely with NASA and is deeply involved in the US government's moon mission plans.
Questions Over Musk's Mars Timelines
SpaceX's Mars timelines have often been questioned, with Musk himself revising the targets multiple times over. In 2016, he suggested that humans could fly to Mars by 2024. Earlier, in a 2011 interview, he said that astronauts could reach Mars in "best case, 10 years, worst case, 15 to 20 years".
NASA's Artemis Programme
Musk's renewed push for Moon settlements fits with US President Donald Trump's executive order last year, pushing for human presence on the Moon by 2028 under NASA's Artemis programme. SpaceX is a major contractor in the mission.
NASA is currently planning a mid-2027 launch for its Artemis 3 mission to send astronauts to the moon, even though the timeline has hit repeated hurdles. Industry watchers say that more delays are possible, as the lunar lander being built by SpaceX for hte mission is still under development.
