Shocking, isn’t it? The man behind SpaceX—the billionaire pushing to Occupy Mars—has never left Earth. Unlike Jeff Bezos and Richard Branson, who own space rocket companies and have undertaken sub-orbital spaceflights, Elon Musk has never publicly shown interest in spaceflights. The closest he’s come to addressing it is his famous line.
“I think it would be great to be born on Earth and to die on Mars. Just not at the point of impact.”
So, why hasn’t Musk ventured beyond our atmosphere? While only Musk can provide the answer, speculation is inevitable, especially since, as reported by Reuters in 2019, three billionaire entrepreneurs—Richard Branson, Jeff Bezos, and Elon Musk—were competing to lead the new era of commercial space tourism.
Marina Koren of The Atlantic, citing an interview with Garrett Reisman—a retired NASA astronaut and SpaceX senior advisor—explains that Elon Musk isn’t interested in low-Earth orbit trips. Instead, his focus is on settling humans on Mars.
Unlike Jeff Bezos’ sub-orbital flights with Blue Origin and Richard Branson’s with Virgin Galactic, which were largely promotional, Musk views space exploration as humanity’s future, not a luxury getaway for the wealthy. However, in 2021, tech billionaire Jared Isaacman funded and participated in the first all-civilian orbital flight, the Inspiration4 mission, aboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon.
Further considerations include Elon Musk’s overwhelming schedule managing multiple companies, where he serves not only as founder and CEO but also as chief engineer, strategist, and key decision-maker—all while overseeing DOGE initiative. Spaceflights demand extensive training and preparation, and the risks involved could jeopardise his long-standing vision of establishing a self-sustaining human colony on Mars.
