Dogecoin (DOGE) got a boost in early Tuesday trading after Elon Musk revived one of crypto's favorite memes—except this time, he might actually mean it literally.

From Meme to Mission

The dog-themed cryptocurrency climbed over 4% in the last 24 hours, outpacing heavyweights like Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH). The catalyst? Musk doing what he does best: posting cryptic comments that send traders scrambling.

The Tesla Owners Silicon Valley account on X dug up Musk's 2021 post promising that "SpaceX is going to put a literal Dogecoin on the literal moon" and asked the obvious question: "When?"

"Maybe next year," Musk replied.

That simple response was enough to get the crypto community buzzing. When another user chimed in saying "Doge on the moon is inevitable," the world's richest person casually confirmed: "Yes."

Taking "To The Moon" Literally

In crypto circles, "to the moon" is classic slang for prices rocketing to astronomical heights. But Musk's 2021 promise added a delightfully literal spin—why just talk about reaching the moon when you own a rocket company?

This isn't the first time Musk has teased this idea recently. Back in November, he posted "It's time" in response to that same 2021 pledge, keeping the speculation alive.

Musk's affinity for Dogecoin is well-documented at this point. He's been cheerleading the meme coin for years, and even managed to name a government efficiency initiative with the acronym DOGE—because why waste a good reference?

The DOGE-1 Connection

There's actually a real mission that could make this happen. DOGE-1 is a satellite project from Canadian research firm Geometric Energy Corporation, funded entirely with Dogecoin. Originally scheduled to launch on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket by late 2023, the mission has hit several delays.

According to Geometric CEO Samuel Reid, the company is now targeting a launch in the second half of 2026. That timing would align perfectly with Musk's "next year" comment, assuming he's thinking ahead to 2026.

Price Action: At the time of writing, DOGE was trading at $0.1081, up 4.75% in the last 24 hours. Year-to-date, the memecoin has declined more than 7%.