Colonization of Mars of sending a person to Mars in 11 or 12 years". Richard Branson, in his lifetime, is "determined to be a part of starting a population on Mars. I think it is absolutely realistic. It will happen... I think over the next 20 years, we will take literally hundreds of thousands of people to space and that will give us the financial resources to do even bigger things". In June 2013, Buzz Aldrin, American engineer and former astronaut, and the second person to walk on the Moon, wrote an opinion, published in "The New York Times", supporting a human mission
Buzz Aldrin to the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York. Aldrin entered West Point in 1947. He did well academically, finishing first in his class his plebe year. He was a member of the academy track and field team. In his final year he travelled with a group of West Point cadets to Japan and the Philippines to study the military government policies of Douglas MacArthur. On June 5, 1951, he graduated third in the class in 1951, with a Bachelor of Science degree. As one of the highest-ranking members of the class, Aldrin had his choice of assignments.