STARGAZING: Robots first to colonise the moon

ELON Musk has built a career on chasing ideas many people once thought impossible.

Now the SpaceX founder has revealed perhaps his boldest dream yet: creating permanent human settlements on the Moon and, eventually, Mars.

The first steps could begin before the end of 2026. But instead of astronauts leading the way, Musk wants fleets of intelligent humanoid robots to go first.

Their job will be to unload cargo, build habitats, install power systems and prepare everything needed for people to live safely in space before the first settlers arrive.

In recent months, Musk has shifted more attention toward the Moon as the ideal starting point. At just three days from Earth, it is far easier and safer to reach than Mars, which lies around six months away. Engineers can test new technologies, solve problems and learn how to build off-world communities much closer to home.

Musk believes a permanent lunar settlement could become reality within the next decade.

Mars would follow later, with cargo missions beginning within seven years and self-sustaining cities potentially appearing sometime between 2045 and 2055.

A project of this scale needs far more than rockets. It also requires a communications network capable of linking Earth, the Moon and Mars.

SpaceX has proposed building an enormous constellation of about 100,000 satellites to provide high-speed communications while supplying the computing power future artificial intelligence systems will need.

Space engineer Jim Cantrell believes this satellite network is the key to the entire plan.

Rather than carrying powerful computers inside every robot, most of the heavy processing could take place remotely through the satellite system, allowing the robots to work together far more efficiently.

SpaceX continues expanding its Starlink satellite network, however Musk says an even larger spacecraft than Starship may eventually be required to transport the huge amounts of machinery needed to build entire settlements.

Transporting all that equipment remains one of the greatest challenges.

Although Starship has achieved major milestones, it still needs to prove orbital refuelling—a vital technology for carrying massive cargo loads on long journeys to the Moon and Mars.

Once that happens, Musk hopes launches could eventually take place every few days.

The Moon offers another important advantage. If something goes wrong, replacement equipment or rescue crews can arrive within days instead of months. Many of the technologies developed there—including habitat construction, water extraction, power generation and life-support systems—will also be needed on Mars.

Much of this work is expected to be carried out by Tesla’s Optimus humanoid robots.

Unlike people, they need no food, water or oxygen. Powered mainly by solar energy, they can work day and night in dangerous environments without risking human lives.

Creating a permanent settlement will still be enormously difficult. Future colonists will need reliable supplies of electricity, oxygen, water and fuel, along with habitats that protect them from harmful space radiation.

Scientists believe frozen water lies beneath the Martian surface, while oxygen and rocket fuel could be produced using local resources.

Even after these technical problems are solved, life on Mars will be far from glamorous. Johnson says it would be exciting but also demanding, with settlers spending most of their time inside enclosed habitats while the harsh Martian landscape waits just beyond the airlock.

Whether Musk’s ambitious timetable succeeds remains to be seen.

But thanks to reusable rockets, rapidly advancing robotics, artificial intelligence and expanding satellite networks, humanity’s first permanent homes beyond Earth are beginning to look less like science fiction and more like the next great engineering challenge.

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