Nigeria, March 15 -- Elon Musk, the founder of SpaceX, has announced that the company's massive Starship rocket is set to begin its journey to Mars by the end of 2026.

The first mission will carry Tesla's humanoid robot, Optimus, with plans for human landings possibly starting as early as 2029, though 2031 is a more likely target.

Starship, known as the largest and most powerful rocket ever built, plays a major role in Musk's vision of making Mars habitable for humans.

NASA is also expecting a customized version of the rocket to be used as a lunar lander for its Artemis program, which aims to send astronauts back to the Moon within this decade.

Before these ambitious missions can take place, SpaceX needs to demonstrate that Starship i...