There were two important stories about Mars this week, one highly visible, the other not; one good, the other bad. Both were revealing, though one unintentionally so.

We learned that SpaceX plans to send uncrewed Dragon capsules to Mars starting in 2018. We also learned that NASA has effectively mothballed its technology program for landing large payloads on the surface of Mars.

Both stories demonstrate the advantage of having a clear goal and executable plan for Mars exploration. SpaceX has a goal of settling Mars and they have a plan to do so, even if it’s not fully public. NASA, despite its Journey to Mars rhetoric, does not. NASA has an ambition for Mars, but no clear path to achieve it.

The Planetary Society has raised this issue before. In fact, it was one of the most important findings from our Humans Orbiting Mars report last year. We recommended that NASA commit to a plan so it can prioritize technology development, integrate near-term human and robotic spaceflight activities, and provide a benchmark for progress. In the absence of an executable plan, it is nearly impossible to properly define your priorities. How can NASA defend the Low Density Supersonic Decelerator (LDSD) to land heavy payloads on Mars when it was never clear how LDSC would factor into the Journey to Mars?

Now let’s take a look at SpaceX.

SpaceX wants to send people to Mars. That’s hard and expensive, and it needs to develop that capability and technology without bankrupting itself. SpaceX generates profits from selling launches on the Falcon 9 and also receives NASA funding to develop crew launch capability to the International Space Station.

Here’s the Dragon V2, the spacecraft that will carry humans to low-Earth orbit: