The first-ever private mission to Mars will be launched by two space companies, but neither of them have yet launched a rocket.
The companies have formed a joint venture that will use a 3D printed launch vehicle for the first commercial mission to Mars.
Even though the startup has a long way to go to successfully launch a mission to Mars, they have some serious engineering experience to work from.
The very first employee that SpaceX hired almost twenty years ago is the founder of Impulse.
The former lumberjack ran the company's propulsion department for more than 10 years. He contributed to the engines that power the Falcon 9 and Dragon spaceships.
The goal of launching a Mars mission as soon as 2024 is roughly the same time as Musk's plan to send a spaceship to the red planet.
"This is a new era of spaceflight, and we want to be positioned to provide reliable, low-cost, in-space propulsion," he said. We want to do everything.
After being dropped off by the Mars Cruise Vehicle, the landers will use four thrusters to land on the Martian surface.
If everything goes according to plan, the goal is to deliver dozens of pounds of science to the Red Planet.
Theglide stage is one of the most challenging aspects of landing on Mars. I am confident that this historic mission will be just one of many, because of the power of our combined teams, experience and passion.
According to the company's website, Terran R, the rocket that will take the Vehicle and Lander into space in the first place, is "radically simplified." It is intended to launch over 20 metric tons.
It's worth pointing out that a journey to Mars in 24 years is an absolutely insane goal. Terran 1, its first iteration, is expected to be launched by the end of the year.
Regardless of the outcome, the two companies hope to provide more competition for the private space industry.
Tim Ellis is the CEO of Relativity Space. There needs to be more than one company doing this. I would like to be the second company to step forward and say this is important.
He hopes there are more.
Two companies joined the race to Mars with a launch possible in 2024.
It seems that a fully 3D-printed rocket is not as crazy as it seems. The investors agree.
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