What Comes Next

The future of space exploration spans tourism to colonization:

• Lunar bases at the south pole will use local water ice for fuel and air
• SpaceX aims for a self-sustaining Mars city within this century
• Europa, Enceladus, and Titan are targets for future robotic and eventually human missions
• Orbital hotels will replace the ISS as commercial space stations
• Asteroid mining could one day supply raw materials worth trillions

The shift from exploration to settlement follows the same pattern as every frontier in human history. First come the explorers, then the scientists, then the builders, then everyone else. Space is entering the builders' phase.