President Trump vowed to send astronauts to Mars during his second inaugural address. "We will pursue our Manifest Destiny into the stars," he said, promising to send astronauts to plant the American flag on Mars.
Elon Musk, the SpaceX CEO and Trump ally, was seated behind the president and gave a vigorous thumbs up at the remark.
Trump's comment could signal a shift in the federal government's focus toward the Red Planet. While Congress reauthorized NASA's budget with a focus on moon exploration last year, landing humans on Mars is a major goal of Musk's SpaceX.
The company is developing Starship, the largest rocket ever built, with the ultimate goal of reaching Mars.
But federal regulators have limited the testing of the rocket, which can discharge tens of thousands of gallons of contaminated water into the protected wetlands that surround the test site in Boca Chica, Texas. Such regulations could be eased under the new Trump administration.
Last week, the experimental starship exploded over Puerto Rico during its seventh test flight.
NASA has the Perseverance rover on a Mars mission now. Earlier this month, the agency announced ways to simplify its mission of retrieving valuable samples stashed on the rover, with the goal of making it cheaper.
At a rally at Capital One Arena, Musk said, "We're going to take DOGE to Mars," referring to the Department of Government Efficiency, the incoming administration's new cost-cutting effort that Trump has tapped Musk to lead. "I mean, can you imagine how awesome it will be to have American astronauts plant the flag on another planet for the first time? How inspiring would that be."
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