SpaceX Will Start 'Payload' Delivery Service To Mars By 2018

It seems you can send gifts to Martians soon, and it will just set you back by $62 million. American aerospace manufacturer SpaceX may start a first of its kind payload service to Mars by 2018.

The company, which belongs to billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk, reportedly wants to send an unmanned spacecraft to Mars by 2018, when it will be at its closest to our planet. Now, SpaceX has also added the option for sending a payload to Mars, along with an updated cost list for the space launch which will be carried out by its Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy rockets. Incidentally, the first price list by the company was published earlier this year, and the respective costs of the two different sized rockets that could travel to Earth's orbit were mentioned.

The recent cost list includes a 1.3 per cent hike in price for rockets travelling to geosynchronous orbits, basically orbits that stay stationary at the same position above our planet. The new list also has an option for carrying a Mars payload, which is definitely the first of its kind service offered by a space company. The Falcon 9 rocket can carry weights up to 4,020 kilograms for approximately $62 million, and the Falcon Heavy will render similar services however its weight allowance is 13,600 kilograms which will come at a price of around $90 million.

The cost is listed on the SpaceX website as a part of a standard payment plan. "SpaceX offers competitive pricing for its Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy launch services," read the website.  "Modest discounts are available, for contractually committed, multi-launch purchases. SpaceX can also offer crew transportation services to commercial customers seeking to transport astronauts to alternate LEO destinations". Of course, there are no clear indications about what the "payload" to Mars can comprise of, but in the broader sense it can be interpreted as packages of any kind, and gifts for aliens perhaps.