“We will never reach Mars if Kamala wins,” says SpaceX founder Elon Musk. The red planet has become the latest ammo in the US presidential race.
Elon Musk has vowed to get “anyone who wants to be a space traveller” to Mars – but not if Kamala Harris becomes US president.
On Sunday night, Musk told his X followers that in just two years, he will send five spaceships to Mars.
“Eventually,” he added, “there will be thousands of Starships going to Mars and it will [be] a glorious sight to see!”
However, the vocal Donald Trump supporter said another Democratic presidency “would destroy the Mars programme and doom humanity” by drowning it in red tape.
Musk also said earlier in the month: “We will never reach Mars if Kamala wins.”
It’s a claim repeated by Republican candidate Mr Trump.
On Saturday, he vowed to reach Mars during his presidency if his supporters get him to the White House.
“I’ll talk to Elon,” he said at a rally. “Elon, get those rocket ships going.”
SpaceX is known for its high-risk high-reward attitude to space exploration, and is now NASA’s main mode of transport for getting astronauts to the International Space Station.
The company has consistently innovated in space; just two weeks ago, it helped an American billionaire become the first person to take part in a risky private spacewalk.
But despite the leaps made by SpaceX in the two last decades, Musk says he is frustrated by how “stifling” bureaucracy and restrictions are in the US.
“One of my biggest concerns right now is that the Starship programme is being smothered by a mountain of government bureaucracy that grows every year.”
If Musk’s unmanned Starships can arrive safely on Mars in two years, he says he will send crewed missions by 2028.
He has previously said he would like to see a self-sustaining colony on Mars in just 20 years.