During an update on his plan to fly to Mars, Elon Musk dropped a new bombshell: He proposes that we use rockets designed for the Mars mission to travel around the world.
Musk’s Space X will design a new rocket module that will make all of the current modules redundant. Using this rocket, Musk wants to shuttle people around the world. In his presentation, he says that any trip, even from New York to Shanghai should take a maximum of 30 minutes. The demonstration video shows passengers getting on a boat that takes them to the launch platform. If the video is an accurate depiction of the actual craft, the rocket should hold around 200 passengers. We then see the rocket take-off and land in Shanghai that same night, touching down the same way the current reusable rockets land.
Musk is generally light on the details when it comes to his bold proclamations. This time was no different. He did not elaborate on the comfort levels of taking off and landing in rockets. Also, there was no indication on how passengers and crew would handle the weightless part of the journey. We also do not know how much such a journey would cost and if it would be financially viable considering the cost of rocket fuel.
The proposal is an interesting one and will have several other aerospace organizations all around the world looking at its feasibility. Unlike his previous attempts to push others to use his ideas, this time around he specifically says that this is a future plan for Space X.