Going to Mars hasn’t been intangible since the 90s. The only thing holding it back is the cost. NASA could absolutely go if they had a $200B budget… mostly because they don’t spend their money wisely and waste shitloads on contracts with Boeing. They SHOULD be able to go to Mars with a $50B/year budget (current budget is in the $25B range), but government contracts are horrific.
A private company should be able to do it with $100B total price. But who wants to spend all that money?
Going to Mars hasn’t been intangible since the 90s. The only thing holding it back is the cost. NASA could absolutely go if they had a $200B budget… mostly because they don’t spend their money wisely and waste shitloads on contracts with Boeing. They SHOULD be able to go to Mars with a $50B/year budget (current budget is in the $25B range), but government contracts are horrific.
A private company should be able to do it with $100B total price. But who wants to spend all that money?