Mars Colonization Timeline – Short Version

Have you ever imagined how humanity will explore and gradually settle the closest potentially habitable planet to Earth? Here we have created a speculative timeline of human exploration and colonization of Mars, blending optimistic tech forecasts with real-world progress. This is the SHORT VERSION of the full Mars Colonization Timeline, which you can explore HERE. The timeline, first published in October 2016, is regularly updated to reflect the latest developments.

2010s – Humanity regaining interest in Mars

Humanity's interest in Mars sparks anew in the 2010s as Curiosity drills into Gale Crater sediments that preserve records of ancient lakes, The Martian dramatizes the daily realities of living off local resources, and SpaceX reveals Starship plans while flying early prototypes. Robotic orbiters continue to explore the Red Planet from above while InSight lands to measure marsquakes and subsurface heat. These scientific returns, cultural reach and prototype hardware steps together rebuild the case for sending people to stay rather than only to observe.

2020s – Laying the groundwork for human arrival

The 2020s mark a surge in robotic exploration as Perseverance rover caches samples in Jezero Crater with Ingenuity proving sustained flight in the thin Martian air, and China delivers its first mission to Mars. SpaceX Starship advances through orbital tests, in-orbit refueling demonstrations and lunar cargo missions while early uncrewed vehicles attempt Mars landings and Marslink satellites begin a dedicated communications network. These efforts convert earlier visions into flight-proven transport chains and precursor systems ready for crewed arrival.

2030s – First humans on Mars

By 2035 the 2030s deliver humanity's first sustained presence on Mars when crews land at sites prepared by robotic forerunners and activate Mars Base Alpha with in-situ resource utilization plants, solar power arrays and nascent greenhouses. The initial teams focus on habitat expansion, water extraction and the first return flights that close the Earth-Mars loop, turning a fragile outpost into the foundation for permanent settlement. In parallel, the US and China are developing their separate bases in the Lunar South Pole region, competing for a dominant foothold there.

Nuclear spaceships slow down for Mars by Thomas Peters

Picture of the Day 19/04/2026 - Two spaceships powered by nuclear thermal rocket (NTR) engines slow down to enter medium Mars orbit near Phobos, the closest of the two natural Martian moons, by graphic designer and illustrator Thomas Peters (aka Drell-7).

Road to the Quarry - Part 7 of Martian sketches by Andrey Maximov

Environment concept artist Andrey Maximov from Armenia has created an impressive set of artworks called Martian sketches depicting a "routine" journey to Mars in 2089. He has just published another 5 pages of those sketches (currently 40 in total). As the artist describes them: "this series is kind of like the road sketches of a member of an expedition to Mars. It's a routine flight in the not-too-distant future. The planet is more or less inhabited. We have an orbital station around Mars. There are already several settlements on the surface, mining is going on."

• 1st part (10 sketches) of Andrey's Martian sketches depicted the expedition leaving Earth;
• 2nd part (5 sketches) depicted expedition's arrival to "International Mars Orbital Station";
• 3rd part (6 sketches) depicted spaceport "Anteros" on Mars.
• 4th part (4 sketches) depicted expedition's road to the "Harmonia City".
• 5th part (5 sketches) depicted the multi-leveled "Harmonia City" on Mars.
• 6th part (5 sketches) depicted southern (industrial) district of the "Harmonia City".

Here is 7th part (5 sketches) depicting expedition's road to the aluminum quarry:

Wilhelm Beer Valley:

NASA's astronauts exploring Phobos

In this NASA concept rendering, an astronaut in a bulky EVA suit stands on the jagged, crater‑pocked surface of Phobos, Mars’s largest and closest moon, as the ruddy disk of Mars looms enormous on the horizon. The uneven regolith stretches out toward a steep crater rim, inside which a fleet of landers and robotic hopper vehicles carry out survey operations.

The render is sourced from NASA's video "Pioneering Space" published 10 years ago:

China will build a robotic Mars base by 2038

In March, China unveiled an ambitious update to its interplanetary exploration strategy, aiming to establish a robotic research base on Mars by 2038, as part of a broader roadmap to explore the Solar System through 2050. The initiative is managed by the China National Space Administration (CNSA).

In 2019 China opened Mars Base 1 Camp - a Mars simulation base in Jinchang, Gansu Province

The first Mars-related mission on this roadmap is the Tianwen-3 Mars sample return mission, already approved and currently scheduled to launch in late 2028, with the aim to deliver samples back on Earth in 2031.

In 2038 China plans to establish a robotic Mars Research Station focused on in-situ resource utilization (ISRU) and conduct long-term Martian environmental and biological research. While initially robotic, the base’s infrastructure will lay the groundwork for future human habitation, mirroring strategies used for China’s future International Lunar Research Station (ILRS) to be permanently habitable after 2035.

Road to the City - Part 4 of Martian sketches by Andrey Maximov

Environment concept artist Andrey Maximov from Armenia has created an impressive set of artworks called Martian sketches depicting a "routine" journey to Mars in 2089. So far he has published 30 pages of those sketches. As the artist describes them: "this series is kind of like the road sketches of a member of an expedition to Mars. It's a routine flight in the not-too-distant future. The planet is more or less inhabited. We have an orbital station around Mars. There are already several settlements on the surface, mining is going on."

• 1st part (10 sketches) of Andrey's Martian sketches depicted the expedition leaving Earth;
• 2nd part (5 sketches) depicted expedition's arrival to "International Mars Orbital Station";
• 3rd part (6 sketches) depicted spaceport "Anteros" on Mars.

Here is 4th part (4 sketches) depicting expedition's road to the "Harmonia City" on Mars:

How to steal an asteroid .. "For All Mankind" season 4

It's possible our judgement is biased towards Mars-related content, but season 4 of For All Mankind alternate history sci-fi TV series is show's most exciting season yet. In season 4, depicting the alternate 2003, the international Happy Valley Base, founded in 1995 during season 3, has been significantly expanded and there are around 200 people living in it. We made a separate article with a large collection of high resolution shots depicting the exterior and interior of Happy Valley Base:

Mars base for 200 people in For All Mankind season 4

The main theme in season 4 is increasingly diverging visions for the purpose of human presence on Mars. For some it's only another contract job, but for others Mars is a new place to call "home". Add to the mix a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to get hold on a large lithium-rich asteroid and increasingly strained relationships between the "upper class" (astronauts / cosmonauts, scientists and top executives) and contract workers literally living underground, and you have a recipe for a "Martian rebellion".

For All Mankind is exploring the idea of never ending space race if Soviets would have beaten US in the race for the Moon and the intention of the show is each season to jump about a decade further into the increasingly diverging reality of the show: in season 1, depicting alternate 1969 to 1974, both Soviets and US start building their separate bases near the lunar South pole; in season 2 (1983) both bases have been expanded and the superpowers compete for resources on the Lunar surface; in season 3 (1992 to 1995), Soviets and US are joined by a private company Helios and North Korea for a four way race to be first on Mars; in season 4 (2003) there is a sprawling international human base on Mars and an unexpected side enters the race to get hold on a large, lithium-rich asteroid for mining. You can watch the show on Apple TV+

Ahead there is a VISUAL RECAP OF SEASON 4, consisting of high resolution shots, downscaled from 4K UHD screens for better image quality. Be aware of heavy spoilers, revealing major story plots:

During season 4 interplanetary ships don't land directly on Mars; instead they dock to Phoenix, orbiting Mars, and the rest of the trip is made via small shuttles heading down to the surface:

Ed and Svetlana flying the asteroid capture ship Ranger:

Season 4 starts with an unsuccessful asteroid capture mission:

Tesla Cybertruck - a pickup truck made for Mars

4 years after the initial unveiling, today is the day when the long-anticipated Tesla Cybertrucks will be delivered to the first customers. Cybertruck is an electric pickup truck with a radically different design and features that no other automaker has ever attempted. Tesla's stainless steel pickup truck doesn't even look like it's made for Earth. Indeed, on several occasions, Elon Musk has stated that a "pressurized edition" of Cybertruck will be the "official truck of Mars".

Illustration of Tesla Cybertruck on Mars by Canadian graphic designer Andres Gonzalez

Of course, the Cybertruck will need to be heavily modified to be useful in Martian conditions (the pressure difference is just one of the problems that will need to be solved), but we can easily imagine a truck with Cybertruck's design features driving around on Mars in not so distant future. We can even imagine a Tesla factory producing those Martian Cybertrucks on Mars itself as early as the 2050s.

Cybertruck Delivery Event will be livestreamed on Tesla's website at 2:00 pm CT.

Exploring Mars with children by Jon Hrubesch

In "Captain Imagine: Tour of the Solar System" (2020) children's book by Karim Elmahmoudi Captain Imagine, a futuristic space explorer, takes young Emily and her brother Simon on a guided tour of our Solar System. The retrofuturistic illustrations for the book were created by American digital painter Jon Hrubesch. Here is one of the illustrations where Captain Imagine and the two children are exploring a Martian canyon.

Retrofuturistic Mars exploration base by Pascal Lee

In 2021 planetary scientist, the director of Haughton-Mars Project, Pascal Lee created a painting with the same, slightly updated scene of the first human exploration mission on Mars as in Chesley Bonestell's famous painting "Exploring Mars" featured in the 1956 book "The Exploration of Mars" by Willy Ley and Wernher Von Braun.

Highlighting Bonestell's legacy, Pascal Lee wrote: "In painting this new "Exploring Mars", I wanted to pay tribute to the grand master of space art and his creation of an iconic classic, but also update elements of the landscape and hardware in light of new knowledge gained about Mars in the intervening 65 years and evolutions in our thinking about future Mars exploration systems and human surface operations."

Comparison of Bonestell's (1956) and Lee's (2021) "Exploring Mars":

First SpaceX astronauts stepping down on Mars; animation by iamVisual

YouTuber iamVisual has created an animation of SpaceX's Starship landing on Mars and the first astronauts stepping down on the surface of the Red Planet. Wait for a little surprise at the end of the animation 😉 Here you can watch the animation and see some images from it:

Astronaut looking at rocket launch tower on Mars by Mark Garlick

Picture of the Day 21/01/2023 - astronaut looking at a rocket launch tower on Mars by British illustrator Mark Garlick. More of his art here.

Exploration rover in Noctis Labyrinthus, Mars by Ludovic Celle

Picture of the Day 06/12/2022 - Large human exploration rover in Noctis Labyrinthus, Mars (a region with maze-like system of deep, steep-walled valleys West of Valles Marineris) by French graphic artist Ludovic Celle. More of his Mars art here.

Astronaut exploring a cliff on Mars by Pat Rawlings

Picture of the Day 24/10/2022 - Astronaut exploring a vertical cliff on Mars (1993) by classical space illustrator Pat Rawlings. More of his art here.

"For All Mankind" season 3 brings space race to Mars

Soviets and US are joined by a private company Helios for a three way race to Mars in the alternate 1990s of For All Mankind season 3. The alternate history sci-fi TV series are exploring the idea of never ending space race if Soviets would have beaten US in the race for the Moon. In first two seasons of the show the focus was the Moon: in season 1, depicting alternate 1969 to 1974, both Soviets and US start building their separate bases near the lunar South pole; in season 2, depicting the alternate 1983, both bases have been expanded and the superpowers compete for resources on the Lunar surface.

The intention of the show is each season to jump about a decade further into the increasingly diverging reality of the show. Season 3 depicts alternate 1992 to 1995 when a race to establish first human base on Mars is facing various dangers for all of the participants. Here is a large collection of HD images from season 3 of the show. First part of the collection contains images with only minor spoilers, not revealing major story plots besides those already known from season 3 trailer.

The actual race starts with Helio's Phoenix launching from low Earth orbit, NASA's Sojourner from the Moon and Soviet Mars-94 directly from Earth:

3 way race to Mars in season 3 of "For All Mankind" alternate history TV series

For All Mankind is an alternate history sci-fi TV series exploring the idea of never ending space race if Soviets would have beaten US in the race for the Moon. In first two seasons of the show the focus was the Moon: in season 1, depicting alternate 1969 to 1974, both Soviets and US start building their separate bases near the lunar South pole; in season 2, depicting the alternate 1983, both bases have been expanded and the superpowers compete for resources on the Lunar surface.

As hinted in the final scene of season 2 Mars will be the central stage in season 3 of the show. Recently released season 3 trailer shows that the Soviets and US are joined by a private company Helios for a three way race to Mars in 1995. Here you can watch the trailer and see some screenshots from it. The season 3 will start airing in June 10 on Apple TV+.

Helios' Mars mobile habitat:

3 rivals racing for Mars in season 3 of For All Mankind TV series:

NASA's spaceship arriving to Mars:

Merry Christmas from Santa Claus on Mars!

Merry Christmas for you all from Santa Claus on Mars! Artwork by American illustrator, Star Wars artist Chris Trevas. More of his art here.

Human mission to Martian moons Phobos and Deimos by Pascal Lee

Over the years planetary scientist, the director of Haughton-Mars Project, Pascal Lee has created a set of paintings depicting human mission to the Martian moons Phobos and Deimos. Here are several of them. More of his Mars related paintings here.

Spaceship approaching Mars with Phobos and Deimos in sight:

Landing on Deimos, the farthest and smallest of the two Martian moons:

Astronauts exploring Deimos:

Landing on Phobos, the closest and largest of the two Martian moons:

Mars exploration roadtrip by Pascal Lee

Over the years planetary scientist, the director of Haughton-Mars Project, Pascal Lee has created a set of paintings depicting a Mars exploration roadtrip. Here are several of them. More of his Mars related paintings here.

Stopping at a crater in Utopia Planitia:

Astronauts exploring a lava tube on Mars:

Mars exploration rover:

Astronaut exploring Mars: