Moon, Moon… Elon, Elon

Elon Musk has once again thrown the world a topic that sounds like a trailer for a science fiction movie, but is presented in the style of a corporate plan: SpaceX is now betting not on Mars, but on the Moon – and a city there could appear within the next 10 years.

According to Musk, the company has already shifted its focus toward building a self-growing lunar settlement. The reason is simple and completely pragmatic: Mars is beautiful, epic, and perfect for a legend, but far too slow for real engineering iteration.

“The mission of SpaceX remains unchanged: to extend consciousness and life as we know it to the stars,” Elon Musk stated.

A flight to Mars takes about six months and is only possible when the planets align optimally – once every 26 months. That means SpaceX has literally one “window” roughly every two years to send a mission, test the system, and draw conclusions. This results in an extremely slow development cycle: one mistake – and you have to wait years for the next chance.

With the Moon, everything is different. It takes only two days to get there, and missions can be launched примерно every 10 days. This provides what Musk considers the key factor for success: the speed of repetition. Fast attempts, fast fixes, fast progress. That is why a lunar city looks more achievable within the next decade, while the Martian project, according to Musk, requires at least 20+ years.

At the same time, Musk emphasizes that SpaceX’s mission does not change. It remains the same, almost philosophical one – “to expand consciousness and life as we know it to the stars.” The logic is simply different now: first secure a foothold where it is easier and faster, and then move further.

The Martian city, of course, has not been canceled. Musk claims that the active phase of building on Mars will begin in about 5-7 years. But the overriding priority is to secure the future of civilization as quickly as possible, and the Moon has the advantage in that sense. “SpaceX will also strive to build a city on Mars and begin doing so in about 5-7 years, but the primary task is securing the future of civilization, and the Moon is the faster path,” Elon says.

And here an interesting subtext appears. The Moon is not only cosmic romance, but also an ideal platform for demonstrating technology: the base is close, missions are frequent, and the impact is loud. That means talk of a “Moon city in 10 years” also sounds like a powerful engine of expectations surrounding SpaceX.

Mars is the dream. The Moon is the deadline.

That is how the right momentum is created ahead of future major financial events like an IPO: first you promise humanity a new home beyond Earth, and then investors begin dreaming along with you.