SpaceX aims for uncrewed Mars mission by late 2026

The update came in a video posted by SpaceX on May 29, just two days after the latest test flight of Starship ended in failure.

Musk recently stepped away from his role in the Trump administration, where he had been working on cutting government bureaucracy, to focus more on his companies, including SpaceX and Tesla.

Starship still faces many hurdles, especially mastering in-orbit refueling after launch. Musk said the end of 2026 is a key target because Earth and Mars will be aligned, making the journey shorter. If SpaceX misses that window, they would have to wait another two years. Musk estimates there’s a 50% chance of being ready on time.

The first Mars flight would carry robots built with Tesla’s Optimus humanoid design. Human missions would follow on later trips, with Musk envisioning 1,000 to 2,000 ships sent every two years to build a permanent settlement on Mars.

Meanwhile, NASA plans to use Starship to land astronauts on the Moon around 2027, as a step toward human missions to Mars in the 2030s.

Musk has set ambitious Mars goals before, initially targeting 2018 for an uncrewed flight and 2024 for a crewed mission. On May 27, SpaceX canceled a live stream after Starship’s ninth test flight ended with the rocket spinning out of control and exploding 30 minutes after launch. Two earlier test flights this year also failed shortly after liftoff.

Despite the setbacks, Musk remains optimistic, saying the latest test provided valuable data and promising more frequent test launches in the near future.

Earlier, it was reported that U.S. President Donald Trump bid farewell to Elon Musk in the Oval Office on Friday, after the billionaire announced his decision to step down from his role at the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).