Despite recent failures, Elon Musk insisted the world’s most powerful rocket will soon blast off to the Red Planet. The tech billionaire said human landings could begin before the end of the decade.

Provided by Deutsche Welle
© SpaceX/AFP

SpaceX founder Elon Musk said Friday that his company’s massive Starship rocket would leave for Mars at the end of 2026, carrying with it Tesla’s humanoid robot Optimus.

In a post on X, Musk also suggested that human landings on Mars could begin as early as 2029 if the initial landings go well, though 2031 was more likely.

The update follows several recent disappointments for the world’s first private space firm and Musk’s long-term vision of colonizing Mars.

What is Starship and what will it do?

Starship — the world’s largest and most powerful rocket — is key to Musk’s plan to colonize Mars.

At 403 feet (123 meters) tall, about 100 feet taller than the Statue of Liberty, the rocket is designed to eventually be fully reusable.

Designed for deep space exploration, it is hoped Starship will make missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond, making space travel more cost-effective and efficient.

NASA is also awaiting a modified version of Starship as a lunar lander for its Artemis program, which aims to return astronauts to the Moon this decade.

However, before those missions can take place, Space X must prove the vehicle is reliable, safe and capable of complex in-orbit refueling, which is critical for deep space missions.

Multiple test flights of the Starship prototype have taken place, with several failures but also milestones like reaching space.

Earlier this month, SpaceX faced a setback when its latest test flight ended in a fiery explosion, its second failure this year.

Despite this, the firm’s approach of “fail fast, learn fast” has helped it become the world’s dominant launch services provider.

On March 6, a SpaceX Starship rocket exploded after liftoff, a second failure this year© @_ericloosen_ via REUTERS

What is Optimus?

Also known as Tesla Bot, Optimus is a humanoid robot being developed by Musk’s electric vehicle company.

It’s designed to perform repetitive, dangerous, or mundane tasks that humans would rather avoid.

The tech billionaire revealed the robot at an event last year. saying he expects it to retail for $20,000 (€18,300) to $30,000.

Will Trump make Mars a priority?

In November, Reuters news agency cited sources saying that Musk’s dream of transporting humans to Mars would become a bigger national priority under US President Donald Trump.

The sources said that Musk’s desire for reforms of the Federal Aviation Administration, the US space and aviation regulator, could help the Mars ambitions.

Musk has frequently clashed with the FAA, accusing it of over-regulating SpaceX over safety and environmental concerns, which he said has slowed the development of Starship.

Trump also vowed in his inauguration speech in January “to plant the Stars and Stripes on the planet Mars.”

However, Musk’s status as one of Trump’s closest advisors and his influence over federal regulators are raising concerns about potential conflicts of interest for his companies, including SpaceX.

Musk’s alignment with Trump, along with accusations of interference in European politics, has made him a target for fierce criticism, political roadblocks and potential legal action.

Trump bought a Tesla this week in a show of support for Musk, whose foray into politics has drawn deep criticism© Getty Images

Edited by: Kieran Burke

Author: Nik Martin (with AFP, Reuters)

It seems strange to suggest, after winning six world championships and some 84 grand prix with Mercedes, that Lewis Hamilton needed a new lease of life in Formula 1 – but that is exactly what he has enjoyed since moving to Ferrari.

The news of his switch to Italy was announced over a year ago but now he has swapped his silver arrow for a prancing horse, there is a renewed vigour to Hamilton, even on the cusp of his 19th season in F1.

He has done much to build an instant relationship with his new team and its famous fanbase, which flocked en masse to Fiorano on a cold, foggy January morning to watch Hamilton complete 30 steady laps in old machinery.

But the occasion also meant something to Hamilton, both his mother and father were in attendance as he donned the red race suit (outside of a photoshoot) for the first time.

The fact he had already posted a picture of him wearing his new overalls, breaking the F1-corner of the internet in the process, was another example of how he was being welcomed into the Ferrari fold.

The most-liked F1 image in the history of Instagram and a picture that instantly showed his financial worth to the team, social media lapped up the content, with Hamilton also snapped outside Enzo Ferrari’s historic home, draped in Italian fashion and in front of an F40 – a veritable easter egg hunt for fans.

Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari
© Autosport.com

Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari

Photo by: Ferrari

His Duolingo clearly having taken a battering over the winter, Hamilton then turned his hand to speaking Italian in front of the Ferrari factory crew – he always knew what he needed to commit to, especially given how ingrained in the team’s culture his new team-mate Charles Leclerc already is, to make the transition as smooth as possible.

Away from his new team, Hamilton has also started to live his best life and, at 40, probably became one of the oldest TikTok users when he set up his new account on the eve of the season-opening Australian Grand Prix, amassing 245,000 followers in less than a day.

How chilled is the knight of the realm? Well, posting a video of him ‘appearing’ in one of his favourite movies, ‘Ferris Bueller’s Day Off’ and roping in Hollywood actor Ed Norton alongside him shows he is having plenty of fun – although maybe proof that it was wise for Hamilton’s role in the upcoming F1 film to be largely behind the camera…

However, the good will, the long welcome, the red carpet and – most importantly – the hopes pinned on him to deliver a first drivers’ title to Maranello since 2007 (incidentally the year he debuted in the championship) will all quickly dissipate if he does not deliver on track.

For all of his record-equalling seven titles, Hamilton is up against a strong, confident, fast team-mate in Leclerc, while his somewhat alarming drop-off in qualifying performance will also need addressing.

Pre-season testing often yields little correlation to performance once the chips are down, although Hamilton setting the second-fastest time across the three days will have been a boost.

x

To Albert Park, then, where the Hamilton/Ferrari journey begins in earnest.

A track where he has won only twice (2008 and 2015), victory will not be expected of him this time around, given the pace of the McLarens, but a strong showing when it matters will start Hamilton off on the right foot.

The latest stage of the latter part of his glittering career has started with kind words, iconic imagery and Matthew Broderick but now has to switch to pure performance on the track.

It might be a challenge but, as Hamilton riffs in his modern-day Ferris Bueller cameo before driving off in a Ferrari 250 GT California Spyder: “Relax. You fellas have nothing to worry about, I’m a professional.”

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The Nigerian government on Friday announced the commencement of the country’s largest electric vehicle charging stations and locally assembled buses in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.

The Minister of State, Trade and Investment, Senator John Enoh, made this announcement at the unveiling event of locally manufactured electric buses and other eco-friendly innovations in Abuja on Friday.

Speaking at the event, Enoh said the federal government, led by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, is committed to advancing industrialisation in the country’s automobile industry.

“I’m the one that would thank NEV Motors for helping me do my job. I mean, I got a mandate for industry push.

“If you look at Mr. President’s eight-point agenda, agenda seven speaks to the mandate of the Ministry of Industry, Trade, and Investment. And that is the diversification of our economy through industry, through digitisation, through creative arts, through manufacturing, and through innovation.

“That’s what it is. And I think that is what is happening here this evening,” he said.

According to him, some talented Nigerians have made it possible to believe in the EV revolution in Africa’s most populous country, Nigeria.

“I think that a lot of Nigerians look at electric vehicles as impossible.

“If we turn our backs, that’s an electric vehicle, isn’t it? So it’s real,” he said.

He reiterated the government’s commitment to supporting the increase of local content of locally manufactured EVs by 30 percent and job creation.

“Those milestones: the first is to increase the local content of locally manufactured vehicles by about 40%. To see whether we’ll be able to produce locally at least 1 million vehicles.

“I mean, to see how we can increase the number of jobs that are available in this sector to about 200,000.

“And most of all, to see how we can increase the local production of electric vehicles by 30 percent,” he said.

On his part, the Chief Executive of NEV Motors, Mosope Olaosebikan, said that Nigeria can lead the way in sustainable mobility in Africa.

“We are not just launching buses. We are launching an era; we are not just talking about the future. We are the future.

“And to anyone still wondering whether Nigeria is ready for electric mobility, let me say this loud and clear: Not only are we ready—we are leading,” he stated.

The Director-General of NADDC, Mr. Oluwemimo Joseph Osanipin, Nigerian Consumer Credit Corporation (CREDICORP), Uzoma Nwagba, and Executive Vice Chairman of National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI) pledged to make Nigerians access affordable and reliable EVs and its revolution.