MUSK BE FATE

Scientist predicted a man named ‘Elon’ would colonise Mars in book written 70 YEARS ago

Harry Pettit, Senior Digital Technology and Science Reporter


ELON Musk's plot to colonise other worlds may have been predicted by a German scientist 70 years ago.

Writing in his 1952 science fiction novel "Project Mars", engineer Wernher von Braun described a man called "Elon" who ruled over the Red Planet.
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4Elon Musk has been very public about his plans to colonise other planetsCredit: AFP

One passage of the book – a fantasy blueprint for a human expedition to Mars – details that "a Martian government was created, led by ten men".

Those men worked under a leader "elected by universal suffrage for five years under the name or title of Elon."

Von Braun was one of the most influential scientists of the 20th century and a key figure in the development of rocket technology in Nazi Germany.

Following World War 2, he was secretly moved to the United States and became a pioneer of space technology for Nasa.

Project Mars may have been science fiction, but it included scientific calculations for how humans might travel to Mars.

The book's spooky prediction was unearthed a few years ago but resurfaced this week on social media.

In one passage, von Braun described two houses in Parliament that enacted laws administered by Elon and his cabinet.

The upper house was called the Council of the Elders and contained 60 people, each of whom was named for life by Elon himself.


4German born rocket pioneer Wernher von Braun (right) in 1944Credit: Getty - Contributor

Seventy years later, and Elon Musk is one of a handful of billionaires with plans to colonise the Red Planet within the next few decades.

His company SpaceX recently became the first private outfit to launch Nasa astronauts into space.

Musk, 49, is open about his wish to explore other worlds, tweeting yesterday that he wants to "‘make humanity a multiplanet species".

And while SpaceX's reusable rockets have only reached Earth's orbit so far, the California company says that future craft will travel much further.

4The book was science fiction but included scientific calculations for how to reach MarsCredit: Getty

Starship, a rocket currently in development at a site in Texas, is designed to reach the Moon, Mars and beyond.

SpaceX plans to reach orbit with the vehicle in an unmanned test flight by 2022.

Billionaire Musk, who is also CEO of Tesla, hopes to send a million people to Mars in his lifetime using a 1,000-strong fleet of the powerful rockets.

The finished product will stand 165ft (50 metres) tall and boast six of SpaceX's powerful Raptor engines.

4Musk wants to colonize other planets within the next few decades Credit: twitter

According to SpaceX, the contraption will hit speeds of 15,000mph (25,000kph), making it the world's most powerful spacecraft.

In a series of tweets last year, Musk outlined how his Starship plans would open up space travel to anyone, regardless of their income.

"Needs to be such that anyone can go if they want, with loans available for those who don't have money," he wrote.

Musk's plan involves building an expansive fleet of Starship vehicles, which comprise a huge rocket topped by a bullet-shaped spacecraft.

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SpaceX says reusable rockets that can land and take off again make space travel more cost effective, accessible and sustainable.

However, the team has a long way to go before they can conduct Starship's first manned flight.

Musk is targeting a Mars cargo mission by 2022 and a manned flight to the Red Planet by 2024.

A prototype Starship recently completed its first successful test flight and landing, reaching an altitude of 6.2 miles (10 kilometres).