From Doge to Spacex Mars Plan to Elon Musk Pivot, focusing on independent colonies by 2029

Elon Musk announced a bold plan to colonize Mars on Thursday and turn humanity into a multi-tranet species in a presentation in Starbase, Texas, a newly established city founded by SpaceX.

Musk outlined the plan for an interplanetary transport system designed to transport humans to the red planet. He did not give a timetable during his speech in March, but he predicted that humans would live on Mars within the next 20 years.

“Progress is measured by the timeline for establishing an independent civilization on Mars, and that's how we measure progress here on Star Base,” Musk told the audience. “Especially in the early days of spacecraft, each launch is about learning what it takes to improve the spacecraft until it can carry hundreds of, if not millions of people in life to Mars.”

A new push for Musk to reach comes after he resigned from his role as Doge's chief under President Trump. Elon Musk's ambition to colonize Mars has been central to humanity's future prospects ever since he first proposed the effort.

The plan to reach Mars relies on SpaceX's spacecraft and orbital refueling, aiming to establish the first human settlement on Mars by 2029, and aims to establish the first human settlement on Mars by 2029.

“We are now able to produce ships about every two to three weeks,” Musk insisted. “We're creating design upgrades so we don't always produce them frequently, but we're ultimately aiming to be able to produce 1,000 ships a day, with three ships a year.”

In addition to the large-scale spacecraft, SpaceX's roadmap to Mars centers around key elements including the new Raptor 3 engine for greater efficiency, a reusable heat shield to survive atmospheric removal on both Earth and Mars, and orbital fuels to expand range and maximize payload capabilities.

Musk said SpaceX will use the Tesla Optimus robot to lay the foundations and build a colony on Mars. The first human mission is set for 2027, and the Arcadia Plantia region is being targeted as a potential site for the first settlement. Long-term goals include transporting at least 1 million tonnes of infrastructure, building multiple launch and landing facilities, and maintaining communications using Starlink satellites.

Ultimately, Musk said the goal was to establish an independent civilization on Mars as a backup for humanity.

“At that point, we achieved civilized resilience that if something goes wrong, or if Earth could come to rescue Mars, then Mars could come to rescue Earth,” he said. “But I think having two powerful planets independently, however, is extremely important for the long-term survival of civilizations.”

Once Mars is colonized and acts as a stepping stone, Musk said humanity can begin his journey to other planets in the solar system, and ultimately to other star systems.

Musk said refueling orbital and transfer of propellant is important to the success of reaching Mars.

“Think of it like air refueling on an airplane. But in orbit, it's never done before, but technically feasible,” he said. “Two spacecraft dock, one moves fuel and oxygen. Most of its mass is over 20% oxygen.

Despite the controversial political and set-offs, including the Turks and Caicos in January and the explosion of Wednesday's spacecraft and spacecraft, Musk appears to be committed to its mission to reach Mars.

“We can be there among the stars, and science fiction is no longer fiction,” he said.