Space
A Tale of Two Rovers: How does Mars 2020 compare to Curiosity?
NASA’s next Mars rover is almost ready to launch. Engineers recently took it for a test spin, before shipping it off to its Cape Canaveral launch site. The six-wheeled rover will blast off this July; once it arrives on Mars, it will scour the red planet for signs of ancient life.
The Mars 2020 rover, which should receive a name very soon, is nearly identical in appearance to its predecessor, the Curiosity rover. After landing on Mars in 2012, Curiosity has spent its time exploring Gale Crater, a 96-mile-wide crater.
It was once the site of an ancient lake and stream system; scientists believe that it may have been able to support life. However, like the rest of the planet’s surface, the area is dry today.
The twin rovers, Spirit and Opportunity landed on Mars in 2004 with one major goal: to follow the water. Right out of the gate, the duo proved that water once flowed on the surface of Mars. But what happened to it?
To answer that question, NASA launched the supersized Curiosity rover to learn more. Since landing in 2012, Curiosity discovered that Gale Crater was once home to an ancient lake billions of years ago and that it could have supported microbial life. The rover is still scouring the crater, hunting for clues as it climbs Mount Sharp, a 3-mile-tall (5-kilometer-tall) peak within the crater — that scientists believe was partially formed by water.
3,760 miles (6,050 kilometers) away, Mars 2020 will explore Jezero Crater, the site of an ancient delta. Here the rover will take the next scientific step: It will look for actual signs of past life, called biosignatures, by analyzing samples of rocks and soil. It will also bag up samples that could be retrieved by future missions and eventually returned to Earth for more in-depth analysis.
Mars 2020 is essentially a souped-up version of the Curiosity rover, but charged with searching for signs of life and collecting samples for eventual return to Earth. The new rover is estimated to cost $1.9 billion dollars and will carry a suite of 7 specialized instruments that will science the hell out of Mars.
But first the rover has to land on Mars. To do so, it must survive a harrowing process known as entry, descent, and landing (aka seven minutes of terror).
To the untrained eye, Mars 2020 looks like an identical copy of Curiosity, but if you look closely, you can tell that the two apart. Building a rover from scratch is extremely difficult and expensive. The folks at NASA built on the success of Curiosity and added new capabilities. A process that enabled more science at a reduced cost.
The beefier Mars 2020 rover is about 280 lbs. (127 kilograms) heavier than its counterpart. That’s because it carries different tools, like a larger drill. This enables the new rover to drill into rocks, extracting rock cores rather than just smashing them.
We all love the epic robot selfies and stunning views of Martian landscapes so of course the new rover will be packing multiple cameras. Curiosity is equipped with 17 cameras; by comparison, Mars 2020 will have 23 that will shoot mostly in color. Additionally, Mars 2020’s Mastcam-Z will film in high definition and be able to zoom.
Mars 2020 will also carry not one but two microphones on its journey so all of us back here on Earth can hear what Mars sounds like. The microphones will record the rover’s landing on Mars, as well as the Martian wind and will listen as the rover zaps scientific targets with its on board laser.
Another design improvement will be the wheels. Curiosity was equipped with aluminum wheels, which have been badly beaten up by the rugged Martian terrain. Sharp rocks have proved to be troublesome, with NASA modifying the rover’s driving plan to ensure Curiosity makes it through its mission. To avoid these kinds of issues, engineers made Mars 2020’s wheels more robust.
“Extensive testing in JPL’s Mars Yard has shown these treads better withstand the pressure from sharp rocks but work just as well on sand,” NASA officials said in a news release.
NASA plans to return to the moon and eventually send humans to Mars. To that end, the Mars 2020 rover will help pave the way for future missions. The rover will carry spacesuit samples to determine how they degrade over time, as well as a subsurface radar instrument that could potentially be used to find buried water ice.
Additionally, an oxygen generator will test technology that future astronauts could use to make their own rocket fuel from the Martian atmosphere.
Elon Musk
Starship V3 is here putting SpaceX closer to Mars than it has ever been
Starship V3 launches May 20 carrying the hardware upgrades that make Moon and Mars possible.
SpaceX is preparing to fly the most significant version of Starship yet. Flight 12, the debut of Starship V3, is targeted for Wednesday, May 20, lifting off from Starbase in South Texas at 6:30 p.m. ET. It will also mark the first launch from the newly built Pad 2, adding another layer of firsts to an already milestone-heavy mission.
Starship V3 is a meaningful step up from what came before, and a next-gen design that improves on raw power and payload capacity. V3 can carry more than 100 metric tons to orbit in reusable configuration, which is roughly three times what the previous version could handle. Additionally, the new design is lighter and simpler than before, thereby reducing risk of component failure, while also reducing flight costs. The launch pad itself is also brand new, meaning SpaceX can now prepare two rockets at the same time instead of one. What makes all of this matter beyond the hardware is what it unlocks. NASA needs V3 to be reliable enough to land astronauts on the Moon, and Musk needs it to eventually carry people and cargo to Mars at a scale that makes a permanent settlement financially possible. Every previous Starship was essentially a prototype. V3 is the version SpaceX actually intends to put to work.
On May 7, SpaceX completed the first full-duration, full-thrust 33-engine static fire with the V3 Super Heavy, following two earlier attempts that ended early due to ground equipment issues. The Ship stage had already cleared its own static fire in April, making Flight 12 the first time both V3 vehicles have been cleared to fly together.
The stakes extend well beyond this single test. As Teslarati reported, NASA needs Starship to work as the Human Landing System for its Artemis program, with a crewed lunar landing now targeted for 2028 under Artemis IV. Before that can happen, SpaceX must demonstrate in-orbit propellant transfer at scale, a process requiring more than ten tanker launches to fuel a single Moon mission. V3 is the vehicle designed to make that economically viable.
Elon Musk has stated that Starship V3 should be capable enough for initial Mars missions, a detail that connects directly to his January 2026 compensation package, which awards him 200 million shares if SpaceX reaches a $7.5 trillion valuation and helps establish a permanent Mars colony of one million people. With SpaceX targeting a Nasdaq IPO as early as June 12 at a valuation of $1.75 trillion, and holding more than $22 billion in active government contracts spanning defense, NASA, and broadband, every successful Starship test adds tangible weight to that number.
Elon Musk cannot be fired from SpaceX, and there’s a reason for that.
In a blunt post on X on Friday, Elon Musk confirmed plans to structurally shield his leadership at SpaceX, ensuring he cannot be fired while tying a potential trillion-dollar compensation package to the company’s long-term goal of establishing a self-sustaining colony on Mars.
Yes, I need to make sure SpaceX stays focused on making life multiplanetary and extending consciousness to the stars, not pandering to someone’s bullshit quarterly earnings bonus!
Obviously, IF SpaceX succeeds in this absurdly difficult goal, it will be worth many orders of…
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 15, 2026
The revelation stems from a Financial Times report detailing SpaceX’s intention to restructure its governance and compensation framework. The moves are designed to protect Musk’s control and align his incentives with the company’s founding mission rather than short-term financial pressures. Musk’s reply left no ambiguity:
“Yes, I need to make sure SpaceX stays focused on making life multiplanetary and extending consciousness to the stars, not pandering to someone’s bullshit quarterly earnings bonus!”
He added that success in this “absurdly difficult goal” would generate value “many orders of magnitude more than the economy of Earth,” though he cautioned that the journey will not be smooth. “Don’t expect entirely smooth sailing along the way,” Musk wrote.
The strategy reflects Musk’s deep concerns about how public-market expectations could derail SpaceX’s core objective. Founded in 2002, SpaceX has repeatedly stated its purpose is to reduce the cost of space travel and ultimately make humanity a multiplanetary species.
Unlike Tesla, which went public in 2010 and has faced repeated battles over Musk’s compensation and board influence, SpaceX remains privately held. Musk has long resisted taking the rocket company public precisely to avoid the quarterly earnings treadmill that forces most CEOs to prioritize short-term stock performance over ambitious, high-risk projects.
By embedding protections against his removal and linking any outsized pay package to verifiable milestones—such as a functioning Mars colony—SpaceX aims to insulate its leadership from activist investors or board members who might demand faster profits or safer bets.
Musk has referenced past experiences, including his ouster from OpenAI and shareholder lawsuits at Tesla, as cautionary tales. In those cases, he argued, external pressures risked diluting the original vision.
Critics may view the arrangement as excessive, especially given Musk’s already substantial voting power and wealth. Supporters, however, argue it is a necessary safeguard for a company pursuing goals measured in decades rather than quarters. Achieving a Mars colony would require sustained investment in Starship development, orbital refueling, life-support systems, and in-situ resource utilization—technologies that may deliver no immediate financial return.
Musk’s post underscores a broader philosophical point: true breakthrough innovation often demands tolerance for volatility and a willingness to ignore conventional business wisdom. As SpaceX prepares for increasingly ambitious Starship test flights and eventual crewed missions, the new governance structure signals that the company’s North Star remains unchanged—humanity’s expansion beyond Earth.
Whether the trillion-dollar package materializes depends on execution, but Musk’s message is clear: SpaceX exists to reach the stars, not to chase the next earnings beat. For investors or employees who share that vision, the protections are not a perk—they are a prerequisite for success.
Elon Musk
Delta Airlines rejects Starlink, and the reason will probably shock you
In a pointed exchange on X, Elon Musk defended SpaceX’s uncompromising approach to Starlink’s in-flight internet service, explaining why Delta Air Lines walked away from a deal.
SpaceX frontman Elon Musk explained on Wednesday why commercial airline Delta got cold feet over offering Starlink for stable internet on its flights — and the reason will probably shock you.
In a pointed exchange on X, Elon Musk defended SpaceX’s uncompromising approach to Starlink’s in-flight internet service, explaining why Delta Air Lines walked away from a deal.
Delta rejected Starlink because it insisted on routing all connectivity through its branded “Delta Sync” portal rather than allowing a simple Starlink experience.
Instead, the airline partnered with Amazon’s Project Kuiper—rebranded as Amazon Leo—for high-speed Wi-Fi on up to 500 aircraft, with rollout targeted for 2028. At the time of the announcement, Kuiper had roughly 300 satellites in orbit, while Starlink operated more than 10,400.
The use of the “Delta Sync” portal would not work for SpaceX, as Musk went on to say that:
“SpaceX requires that there be no annoying ‘portal’ to use Starlink. Starlink WiFi must just work effortlessly every time, as though you were at home. Delta wanted to make it painful, difficult and expensive for their customers. Hard to see how that is a winning strategy.”
Musk doubled down in a follow-up post:
“Yes, SpaceX deliberately accepted lower revenue deals with airlines in exchange for making Starlink super easy to use and available to all passengers.”
Not exactly. SpaceX requires that there be no annoying “portal” to use Starlink.
Starlink WiFi must just work effortlessly every time, as though you were at home.
Delta wanted to make it painful, difficult and expensive for their customers. Hard to see how that is a winning…
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 13, 2026
SpaceX has structured its airline agreements to prioritize zero-friction access—no captive portals, no SkyMiles logins, no paywalls or ads blocking basic connectivity.
While this means forgoing higher-margin deals that would let carriers monetize the service more aggressively, it ensures Starlink feels like home broadband at 35,000 feet. Passengers on partner airlines such as United, Qatar Airways, and Air France have already praised the service for enabling seamless video calls, streaming, and work mid-flight without interruptions.
Delta’s choice reflects a different philosophy. By keeping Wi-Fi behind its Delta Sync ecosystem, the airline aims to drive loyalty program engagement and control the digital passenger journey. Yet, critics argue this short-term control comes at the expense of immediate competitiveness.
Airlines already installing Starlink are pulling ahead in customer satisfaction surveys, while Delta passengers face years of reliance on slower, legacy systems until Leo launches.
SpaceX’s decision to trade revenue for simplicity will pay off in the longer term, as Starlink is already positioning itself as the default high-speed option for carriers that value passenger satisfaction over incremental fees.
Musk’s focus on creating not only a great service but also a reasonable user experience highlights SpaceX’s prowess with Starlink as it continues to expand across new partners and regions.
Starship V3 is here putting SpaceX closer to Mars than it has ever been
SpaceX just forced Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile to team up for the first time in history
