SpaceX agrees to take Italian experiments to Mars

Elon Musk, CEO of SpaceX, introduces the SpaceX Dragon V2 spaceship at the rocket company's headquarters. (Jae C. Hong / AP Photo)

WASHINGTON - Elon Musk’s SpaceX has agreed to carry Italian experiments on its Starship megarocket during planned future missions to Mars, according to a new deal announced on Thursday.

“Italy is going to Mars!” Italian Space Agency president Teodoro Valente said on X, adding that the scientific experiments would fly on the first Starship trips to the red planet that have customers.

Musk dreams of colonizing Mars using Starship, however the massive rocket has suffered several setbacks after recent tests ended in spectacular explosions.

Still, the world’s richest man - who is known for his aggressively optimistic timelines - maintains that the first Starship launches will take place next year.

SpaceX president Gwynne Shotwell also announced the “first-of-its-kind” deal with the Italian Space Agency, saying that there was “more to come.”

“Get on board! We are going to Mars! SpaceX is now offering Starship services to the red planet,” she posted on X, formerly Twitter.

Musk - the world’s richest man and a former close advisor to U.S. President Donald Trump - has cultivated close ties with Italy’s hard-right Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.

A proposed cybersecurity deal between the Italian government and Musk’s satellite company Starlink was heavily criticized by opposition parties in Italy earlier this year.

In June, a SpaceX Starship rocket exploded during a routine ground test, resulting in the complete loss of the vessel.

Standing 403 feet (123 metres) tall, Starship is the world’s largest and most powerful rocket and is billed as a fully reusable rocket with a payload capacity of up to 150 metric tons.