2 ms·

This plan sounds much more sensible than most of what I've heard from Musk before. Especially the intercontinental transport part. That is a real business use

• nicktelford 9y ago
  Given his aspiration to sell it for prices comparable to economy airline tickets, I feel like the outlay of building the facilities at each end will eat up a lot of the profits. It's a neat idea, but I don't see this funding the Mars colony ambitions, at least not in the short term. If they can get that infrastructure heavily subsidised, then perhaps it's a different story. That said, I can't see many cities that would be willing to invest in this, except perhaps the ultra-rich ones, like Dubai. Imagine getting this built for New York or London. I can't. Edit: I don't mean to sound so negative; I actually think the rest of the talk was super positive in that it feels realistic - it's just the inter-continental travel bit that gave me pause.
  • grondilu 9y ago
    > It's a neat idea, but I don't see this funding the Mars colony ambitions, at least not in the short term. I think you misunderstood him. Musk doesn't plan on founding a mars colony. He plans on giving a solid business plan for a big, fully reusable rocket capable of transporting hundreds of people. He believes transportation is the main obstacle to people building a city on mars.