(NewsNation) — President Donald Trump vowed to send American astronauts to the planet Mars during his inaugural address Monday.

“We will pursue our manifest destiny into the stars, launching American astronauts to plant the Stars and Stripes on the planet Mars,” Trump declared.

Tech billionaire Elon Musk, who has long advocated for colonizing Mars, gave an enthusiastic two thumbs up in the audience.

Trump added: “Right now our nation is more ambitious than any other, there’s no nation like our nation.”

Why does Trump want to reach Mars?

Trump sees Mars as the next frontier of American exploration and achievement — echoing a sentiment from the “space race” in the 1960s.

The president said the push to Mars would carry the U.S. flag into “new and beautiful horizons.”

“The United States will once again consider itself a growing nation, one that increases our wealth and expands our territory,” he said.

Trump has long been interested in U.S. space policy, creating the Space Force during his first term. He also initiated NASA’s return to the moon.

Musk’s influence could also be driving Trump’s interest in the Red Planet.

Can humans get to Mars?

No human has ever set foot on Martian soil, though robotic rovers have been exploring the planet for over 25 years.

One of the main challenges is that Mars is far away, about 140 million miles from Earth on average.

“Rather than a three-day lunar trip, astronauts bound for Mars would be leaving our planet for roughly three years,” according to NASA.

Put another way: Astronauts traveling to Mars will return home with more than a billion miles on their vehicle’s odometer — more than a thousand times the distance Artemis I traveled.

There’s also food, water and oxygen to be considered. Temperatures on Mars can range from minus-284 degrees Fahrenheit to 86 degrees Fahrenheit, and the atmosphere is 96% carbon dioxide, per NASA.

Despite those hurdles, NASA is working on technology that could send astronauts to Mars as early as the 2030s.

Some think sending crew-capable spacecraft to Mars could happen even sooner, potentially before Trump leaves office in Jan. 2029.

“We have no doubt that Starships will be standing on Mars by 2029 if the government doesn’t get in [Elon Musk’s] way,” Greg Autry, former White House liaison to NASA under Trump and Brett Mecum, who serves on the Arizona Space Commission, wrote in a recent op-ed for The Hill.

Trump preached boldness and optimism during his inauguration speech Monday.

“If we work together there is nothing we cannot do and no dream we cannot achieve,” he said.