Although NASA hopes to setup a Mars outpost by the end of the 2030s, the first astronauts that set foot on Mars will do so with the aim of establishing a base for research and operations, not a permanent colony. The agency claims that the base will be designed to accommodate astronauts on a temporary basis.
Ben Bussey, the chief exploration scientist in NASA's Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate, said a colony is "a long way down the road. No one's thinking of, on the NASA side, like a permanent human base."
"The idea here is that you would have your exploration zone that you set up for the first crew," he added. "And that crew would leave, and then you send another crew at the next good launch opportunity. So it isn't permanently occupied, but it is visited multiple times."
NASA has taken big steps towards its temporary base and recently created the most detailed map of Mars to date through the tracking of the gravitational pull on its spacecraft in order to achieve a better resolution and view.
After their base is complete, it is possible that a permanent colony could be developed, but the main goal for NASA, as of now, is a temporary base. However, other organizations, including SpaceX, are aiming for colonization.
SpaceX was founded in 2002 by entrepreneur Elon Musk, who has repeatedly claimed that the main goal of the organization is to extend human colonization onto other planets. He hopes that thousands of people will be living on Mars in the near future, pointing to fully and rapidly reusable rockets as the key to this achievement, as it would cut the costs of spaceflight by a factor of 100 or more.
In order to take steps towards its goal, SpaceX has been conducting tests on reusable rockets, including an attempt to land the first stage of its Falcon 9 rocket back on Earth after being launched. Although most attempts have failed, they managed to land one on one occasion on terra firma at Florida's Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, which is the first time that this has ever been accomplished during an orbital launch.
