SpaceX’s 2018 Red Dragon Mission: Martian Colonization Will Cost $320 Million, NASA Estimates

During the meeting that was conducted by the NASA Advisory Council Tuesday, one of the important questions regarding the SpaceX's Red Dragon mission to Mars was tackled. That is when Jim Reuter, one of the company's agency deputy associate administrators, shared that the total estimated price to realize the project. That is about $320 million, way cheaper than other NASA's Mars missions.

Reuter also shared how NASA is willing to support the project in exchange of the information that will be gathered through the Red Dragon Mission, as stated by The Verge. According to him, NASA is willing to invest about $32 million, which is the amount that will go directly to the employees working to realize the project SpaceX. Aside from that, the company is also willing to offer technical support and advices for the victory of the mission.

The Red Dragon Mission's goal is to be able to land heavy equipment on Mars and start a Martian colony. Experts state that though the mission's success is possible, the company will surely have a hard time realizing it. That is because of the Mar's thin atmosphere cutting the pressure to one-hundredth as compared to that of the Earth's. With the planet's low pressure, aircrafts will have a harder time to land in the planet's ground with all its parts complete.

NASA's former chief technologist Bobby Braun said that the mission can be risky. But despite that, he still believes that every step is an opportunity for technology's improvement, as reported by Arstechnica. "Don't get me wrong, it is certainly a risky proposition," Bobby Braun said. But, "that certainly improves their chances of success," he added.

Though there is already a leaked information about the Red Dragon Mission Project, SpaceX is still yet to detail the complete data about it. The company also remained silent with regards to the total costs of the project and on how the company will finance the project.