A Third World War Can Ruin Our Mars Mission, Says SpaceX CEO Elon Musk

Elon Musk, CEO of SpaceX and Tesla Motors, fears that a potential third World War can hold humans back from taking a plunge into space and land on Mars.

In an interview with GQ, Musk reflected on how there are obvious threats that can ruin the Mars mission.

Business Insider

He said, "There¡¯s a window that could be opened for a long time or a short time where we have an opportunity to establish a self-sustaining base on Mars before something happens to drive the technology level on Earth below where it¡¯s possible."

Here, Musk believes that humans may run out of technologies before they get a chance to put the 'Mars Mission' into play.

The Guardian

Second, Musk also expressed how real the threat of a third World War is. While elaborating on this, he said, "I don¡¯t think we can discount the possibility of a third World War," Musk said. "You know, in 1912 they were proclaiming a new age of peace and prosperity, saying that it was a golden age, war was over.

"And then you had World War I followed by World War II followed by the Cold War. So I think we need to acknowledge that there's certainly a possibility of a third World War, and if that does occur it could be far worse than anything that's happened before. Let's say nuclear weapons are used. I mean, there could be a very powerful social movement that's anti-technology. There's also growth in religious extremism. Like, I mean, does ISIS grow¡­?"