SpaceX’s Planned Mars Landing Timeline Revealed In NASA Document

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After NASA solicited and then selected a fresh round of proposals for its Mars sample return program, a freedom of information request made by an X user in Australia has shared details of the agency's selection process. NASA announced the list of finalists for its Mars sample return proposal request earlier this month, and in this list were big ticket names in the space industry, such as SpaceX and Lockheed Martin.

Now, the document sheds more light on the details of their plans to bring back samples collected by the Perseverance rover from the Martian surface, and within these details is a tentative timeline for SpaceX's plans to land on Mars.

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NASA released the solicitation for a fresh set of proposals to recover samples collected by Perseverance on Mars in April after the previous project drew criticism for its excessive costs. In response, the space agency received 48 proposals, and among these, seven proposals made the cut in June. In this list, SpaceX, Blue Origin and Lockheed Martin stood out from the pack due to their existing partnerships with NASA for the Artemis program. SpaceX is NASA's first choice to land humans on the Moon, with Blue Origin also having won a lunar lander contract.

SpaceX's plan involved using Starship for the Mars sample return, and the source selection document for the proposals shares additional details. These share that SpaceX plans to use Starship for all aspects of the Martian journey. This includes lift off from Earth, transit in space, a Martian landing and the final ascent for Earth return. NASA was impressed, in particular, by SpaceX's "very strong team," which not only has the required experience for the mission but also "support"