While most people look a few years ahead, Elon Musk is already thinking millions of years into the future. The billionaire behind SpaceX is urging humanity to set its sights on Mars — not just for exploration, but for survival.
Musk has often said that Earth cannot be our only home. In a recent interview with Fox News host Jesse Watters, aired on 6 May, he explained why settling Mars is more than a dream — it’s a necessity. He believes that, although Earth may seem stable for now, the future holds a much bleaker picture.
According to Musk, the sun is slowly growing hotter and brighter. Over time, that increase will strip Earth of its atmosphere and cause the oceans to boil away. While this won’t happen tomorrow, Musk points out that the timeline isn’t eternal. He estimates that life will become impossible on Earth in about 450 million years.
Speaking during the interview, he said, “Eventually, all life on Earth will be destroyed by the sun. The sun is gradually expanding, and so we do at some point need to be a multiplanet civilization, because Earth will be incinerated.”
Musk described Mars as a form of “life insurance” — a way to preserve humanity and other life forms beyond Earth’s eventual end. The most distant threat may be five billion years away, when the sun becomes a red giant and engulfs the planet completely.
SpaceX, under Musk’s leadership, is already working on the technology to make this vision possible. Their reusable rocket, known as Starship, is being developed to transport humans and cargo to Mars. Musk believes that if Starship succeeds, it could make Martian settlement both achievable and affordable.
Though the warning sounds far-off, Musk’s message is clear: preparing for Mars now is key to giving life on Earth a chance to continue, even after the planet is gone.
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