Elon Musk, the new CEO of Twitter, has provided an update on his aim of launching a SpaceX expedition to Mars.

In recent weeks, the world’s richest billionaire has made headlines for the catastrophic start to his reign as owner of the social media platform.

Musk has long expressed his ambition to visit Mars, and has even spoken of colonising the planet in the coming decades.

It comes after weeks of instability at Twitter when the social media behemoth was secured.

In response to a Twitter user who shared a meme implying Musk prioritised Twitter over Tesla and the Mars expedition, Musk commented, “Mars plans are still moving forward.”

Musk has presided over a turbulent few weeks at Twitter HQ.

He restored former President Donald Trump’s account and offered universal amnesty to suspended accounts, both times after putting the decision to a public vote on the social networking platform.

“I don’t see any reason for it,” the former US president remarked of returning to the platform.

Musk concluded his massive $44 billion (£36 billion) transaction on October 28 following months of a legal battle.

The world’s richest man, estimated to be worth $181 billion (£149 billion), has now laid off half of the company’s 7,500 employees.

Hundreds more employees are thought to have gone after receiving an email stating that those who remained will be asked to work long hours and do “hardcore” tasks.

It has caused some SpaceX supporters to be concerned about the future of Musk’s long-promised Mars plans, but the entrepreneur has sought to assuage such fears.

Musk, 51, has previously stated that his proposal to construct a Mars colony will allow mankind to become not only multiplanetary, but interstellar.

It is hoped that a completely self-sufficient Mars colony will be established by 2050, though SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has yet to talk publicly about what occurs after that.

He stated, “It’s been now almost half a century since humans were last on the Moon. That’s too long, we need to get back there and have a permanent base on the Moon – again, like a big permanently occupied base on the Moon.

“And then build a city on Mars to become a spacefaring civilisation, a multi-planet species.”

Musk has stated, “Eventually something will happen to Earth, hopefully not soon, either natural or man-made that would cause the end of civilisation.”

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