Elon Musk 'guesses' SpaceX could send a ship to Mars as soon as 2024 - CNET

During an interview at the Mars Society virtual convention on Friday, Musk said he now thinks his next-generation Starship spacecraft could be ready as soon as 2023, in time for a launch window in 2024.

"I think we've got a fighting chance," Musk said of making the 2024 Mars transport window. .

"We'll probably lose a few ships," he said when asked about the development process for Starship, which is designed to eventually take dozens of people at a time to Mars.

"These are just guesses," Musk told Mars Society President Robert Zubrin over Zoom. .

As for who'll get to go to Mars, Musk said that once there are a million people who both want to go to the red planet and can afford it, that should be enough to sustain a city.