Nearly 50 years ago, American Neil Armstrong took his and the world’s first step onto the moon. Since, the world has been fascinating with conquer new frontiers. Next stop, Mars.

“NASA is working on a rocket to get to Mars… and yes, them getting there is very realistic,” senior Brandon Coover said.

But unlike the 60’s, there is a new player in town. Elon Musk, founder and CEO of Spacex, a private company for commercial space exploration has plans of his own to reach Mars.

“It’s the battle between governmental space travel and commercial space travel,” junior Emma Kerr said.

The both have a symbiotic relationship with one another, sharing ideas, plans and resources. The competition in the new “space race” is really more of a friendly rivalry. Still, someone is going to get there first.

“NASA not only has more experience in the field of space, because they’ve been there before, but they also have more experienced people,” Kerr said.

Only time will tell who is going to win this century’s next space race.