SpaceX aspired to land its Dragon capsule on, well, land, using thrusters to descend instead of parachuting into water. On a rocky, sea-less planet like Mars, this was a crucial approach. At today's International Space Station Research and Development Conference, Musk admitted that the Dragon won't be used in this capacity: It would take far too much effort for the capsule to meet safety standards.

But Musk noted that the company has come up with a better plan for landing on Mars. It will fold it into SpaceX's next generation of Mars landing systems, which should be announced soon. Until then, all we know is it will be "more affordable" and slightly smaller, according to Ars Technica.