US President Donald Trump has announced that the country will organize a manned mission to Mars "very soon", with the landing on the Red Planet following the upcoming return of American astronauts to the Moon. The statement was made during his official address on the National Mall in Washington on the occasion of Independence Day, coinciding with 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States.
During his inaugural address, which was delayed due to severe storms in the capital, Trump invited to the stage The astronauts of the Artemis II mission - Reed Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Jeremy Henson. The Orion spacecraft with the four astronauts on board recently completed a historic flyby of the moon.
“I assume you're going to Mars“, Trump told the crew. “We're going to Mars very soon. We're going to do the moon first, and then we're going to move on from there. We will go to Mars and we will continue to be far ahead.“
The president emphasized that under his leadership, the United States has regained its clear leadership in space. “We were losing to China and Russia in the space race, but now we are ahead of them by giant steps“, the American leader was categorical.
What is known about the US space schedule at the moment:
- Moon Priority: The Trump Administration Has Already Approved the Official Course for a Manned Landing on the Surface of the Moon by 2028, with the plan to build a permanent lunar base by 2030.
- NASA Restructuring: The new administrator of the space agency, Jared Isaacman, has already imposed serious changes. The expensive Gateway lunar orbiting station project was canceled, as was the Mars Sample Return mission. The funds saved are being channeled directly into technologies for direct landing and exploration of the Martian surface.
- Mars Nuclear Program: In the spring of 2026, Trump ordered NASA to urgently develop a medium-power space nuclear reactor designed to power future bases on the Moon and Mars.
- SpaceX's role: Realizing the plans “Trump“ relies heavily on the private sector and Elon Musk's Starship mega-rocket. SpaceX plans the first unmanned Starship test flights to Mars in the next few windows (between the end of 2026 and 2028).
Sources: New York Post, Brisbane Times, Fox News Digital, Space Policy New