Elon Musk Just Called This Forgotten Rocket Pioneer 'Ahead Of His Time' After the New York Times Mocked Him in 1920 And Had to Apologize 49
SpaceX (NASDAQ: SPCX ) CEO and chief engineer Elon Musk revived the story of Robert Goddard on Thursday, whose ideas drew ridicule before they became the foundation of modern spaceflight, calling the American rocket pioneer "ahead of his time." Musk Honors Goddard’s Early Rocket Vision Musk made the remark on X while responding to a post showing a statue of Goddard in Roswell, New Mexico, where the physicist conducted experiments. "He was ahead of his time," Musk wrote. He was ahead of his time — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 31, 2026 Goddard launched the world’s first successful liquid-fueled rocket on March 16, 1926, from his relative’s farm in Auburn, Massachusetts. Fueled by gasoline and liquid oxygen, the 10-foot vehicle flew for 2.5 seconds, climbed 41 feet and landed 184 feet away in a cabbage patch. NASA compares the flight’s significance with the Wright brothers’ breakthro...
SpaceX (NASDAQ: SPCX ) CEO and chief engineer Elon Musk revived the story of Robert Goddard on Thursday, whose ideas drew ridicule before they became the foundation of modern spaceflight, calling the American rocket pioneer "ahead of his time." Musk Honors Goddard’s Early Rocket Vision Musk made the remark on X while responding to a post showing a statue of Goddard in Roswell, New Mexico, where the physicist conducted experiments. "He was ahead of his time," Musk wrote.
He was ahead of his time — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 31, 2026 Goddard launched the world’s first successful liquid-fueled rocket on March 16, 1926, from his relative’s farm in Auburn, Massachusetts.
Fueled by gasoline and liquid oxygen, the 10-foot vehicle flew for 2.5 seconds, climbed 41 feet and landed 184 feet away in a cabbage patch.
NASA compares the flight’s significance with the Wright brothers’ breakthrough.
His wider work produced patents for liquid propulsion and multistage rockets.
Goddard also developed fuel pumps, gyroscopic guidance and steering systems that became standard rocket technology.
Goddard’s Breakthroughs Outlasted Years Of Ridicule Recognition came slowly.
In 1920, The New York Times mocked Goddard’s suggestion that rockets could function in a vacuum and reach the moon, saying he lacked knowledge "ladled out daily in high schools." The newspaper published "A Correction" in July 1969, one day after Apollo 11 launched.
Read Also: Elon Musk Once Revealed How He Comes Up With 'Crazy Ideas' — And Gets Them Off The Ground Even When Funding Is Scarce Goddard kept working.
Smithsonian and Guggenheim funding helped him move his laboratory to Roswell in 1930.
National Park Service records show he later launched a gyroscope-equipped rocket to 4,800 feet and received dozens of patents.
SpaceX Extends Goddard’s Vision Toward Mars Musk’s tribute connects Goddard’s work with SpaceX’s pursuit of reusable rockets, which Musk says are essential to making humanity multiplanetary.
SpaceX designed Starship for rapid reuse with minimal refurbishment to lower launch costs and support thousands of flights.
Musk recently reiterated, "I will not forget about Mars," even as SpaceX develops Starship for NASA’s Artemis program.
Starship’s latest test released 20 advanced Starlink satellites before completing the spacecraft’s best reentry yet.
SpaceX aims to recover and relaunch both stages, extending the reusable model pioneered by Falcon 9.
A century after Goddard’s tiny rocket cleared a cabbage patch, Musk’s assessment fits the historical record.
Ideas once dismissed as impossible now power missions to orbit, the moon and potentially Mars.
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