Billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk said during an interview that “a bunch of people probably will die” during a future mission to Mars, adding that the journey will be “arduous and dangerous.”
Musk explained to Peter Diamandis, founder and chairman of the XPrize Foundation for scientific discovery, that several people have questioned if a mission to Mars is “some escape hatch for rich people.”
“Going to Mars reads like that ad for Shackleton going to the Antarctic,” Musk added. “It’s dangerous, it’s uncomfortable, it’s a long journey, you might not come back alive. But, it’s a glorious adventure and it’ll be an amazing experience.”
“It’s an arduous and dangerous journey where you may not come back alive,” Musk continued. “Honestly, a bunch of people probably will die in the beginning.”
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In December, Musk stated that he was “highly confident” in his prediction that his company would have humans on Mars by 2026, CNBC reported.
Musk announced last month that he had plans to create a city in Texas called “Starbase,” which would be “much larger than Boca Chica.” Boca Chica is the current city which is home to Texas’ SpaceX launch pad.
A SpaceX SN10 Starship prototype rocket exploded on March 3 after it was successfully launched and completed a bellyflop in the air. (RELATED: ‘This Is Not Freedom’: Elon Musk Blasts ‘Fascist’ Government Imposed Lockdowns)
While Musk’s company has reportedly launched around 100 rockets in the past decade in their efforts to try to send people to Mars, a number of rockets have also been lost in explosions, the New York Post reported.