Elon Musk has pivoted from his long-standing focus on Mars, announcing an ambitious plan to set up a “self-growing city” on the moon in less than a decade.
The plan could see Musk’s aerospace company, SpaceX, competing for prime space with China’s planned International Lunar Research Station, which Beijing aims to establish by 2035.
While it is possible both the US and China could have bases on the moon within a decade, a space expert said it would require massive infrastructure that neither country had put in place yet.
“For those unaware, SpaceX has already shifted focus to building a self-growing city on the moon,” Musk wrote on social media earlier this week, adding that the company could potentially achieve the goal in less than a decade, while doing so on Mars would take at least 20 years.
Musk’s statement is a 180-degree turn from a little over a year ago, when he posted on social media: “We’re going straight to Mars. The moon is a distraction.”
The billionaire entrepreneur explained this week that while the company still intended to begin work on a Mars city within five to seven years, the moon would be the initial focus to secure the “future of civilisation”.