Space tourism is a logical extension of the tourist business that exists now all over the Earth. Space tourism is becoming more popular as an alternative to traditional forms of travel. A ticket may be purchased by anyone who wants one. There is no need for astronaut training. This has not occurred as of yet, but many things are happening around the globe right now that are working toward making it a reality.
A future in which unrestricted access to space flight is available to all people is not too distant. Several firms specialize in space tourism, allowing you to experience the ‘last frontier’ for a fee.
As a result of the fast development of space tourism, it could not be long before arranging a trip to space is as simple as making a reservation for a flight to Europe. Some industry professionals believe that within a concise amount of time—a few decades, to be precise—this sector may bring about a revolution comparable to that brought about by other NASA developments, such as actual robots.
What is space tourism?
You may be forgiven for pondering the question, “What really differentiates typical space flight from space tourism?” The primary distinction is that space tourism refers to human travel in space for recreational or leisurely reasons. As with all tourism, the primary objective is to satisfy human beings. We may split space travel into orbital, suborbital, and lunar space tourism.
Suborbital flights are typically much slower (though they still travel at 3,700mph) and usually fly directly up into space and back down again. This is in contrast to orbital space tourism, which involves extremely high speeds (17,400 mph), as it enables a rocket to orbit around the Earth. Most of the time, space tourism organizations take their passengers on suborbital trips. Trips to the moon are part of what’s known as “lunar space tourism.”
Although there are some broader definitions of space tourism, such as watching rocket launches or stargazing, we will focus on commercial space travel in this article because it has the most far-reaching consequences.
Types of space tourism?
Tourists may visit many distinct places in space. These places include the International Space Station (ISS), orbital resorts, and suborbital space hotels. The cost of one of these might change significantly based on the duration of stay and the facilities and services provided.
Space tourism is a fascinating new way to travel, and many alternatives are available to accommodate travelers of all financial means. A vacation in space is waiting for you, whether you want a quick journey to a suborbital station or a more extended stay in a resort in orbit around the Earth.
Sub-orbital space tourism
When traveling to suborbital space, experience is the most important thing. You will get the opportunity to experience weightlessness, see the world from space, and maybe even observe the Earth’s curvature. To begin, you should be aware that even suborbital space flight only gets you approximately 100 kilometers (62 miles) above the surface of the Earth.
Therefore, it cannot be said that you will be traveling into “outer space.” However, after your vehicle reaches the highest point of its voyage, you will feel as if you do not weigh for several minutes. And while 62 miles may not seem like a lot, it’s quite a ways above sea level! You will be able to see the horizon of Earth from this vantage point, and you may even be able to make out the curvature of our globe.
Orbital flights
The practice of orbital space tourism is the pinnacle of travel experiences. It is reasonable to anticipate spending between $200,000 and $250,000 for a journey that lasts 20 minutes and brings you 150 miles above Earth before bringing you back to Earth in around six minutes.
When you travel in this manner, you won’t have to worry about the “risks” associated with reentering the atmosphere of Earth after being in space. This makes the experience far less hazardous than suborbital flying. So long as you are ready to put up some cash, no actual dangers are involved!
To the moon
Several businesses in the space industry are already accepting bookings for their first private lunar voyage from very daring and highly wealthy customers.
Depending on the firm, guests will stay there for ten days before being transported back to Earth in an appropriately adapted lunar module. When it finally reaches the moon, which should take approximately three days, the lunar module will begin a looping trajectory that will bring it as near the moon’s cratered surface as 102 kilometers.
History of Space Tourism
There have been 600 space travelers in all. Although the first man entered space in 1961, many people’s interest in space began far earlier. As far back as records can go, humans have been stargazing. Even the ancient Egyptian pyramids were constructed using the sky as a guide.
Therefore, the idea of space tourism is not brand new.
Space tourism opinions made significant strides throughout the 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s. World leaders in this field, the Soviet Union and the United States made several journeys into space to explore our solar system and the adjacent planets and moons. Space flight became more accessible during this period, and humans gained much knowledge.
Commercial space tourism, in which a visitor might go to space, did not start to become a reality until the turn of the new century. Between 2001 and 2009, a small number of affluent people from throughout the globe left for their leisurely trips into space. As a result of increasing demand, several space tourism businesses, including Blue Origin, Virgin Galactic, and Rocket Lab, started to appear. These businesses have now gained widespread recognition.
The commercial thrill and hysteria around space travel has subsided in recent years. The public avidly anticipates the possibility of swapping their all-inclusive vacation in Benidorm for a week of weightlessness in space. Still, this remains an impractical and unreachable dream for the vast majority.
As of right now, it seems like only the very wealthy will be able to fly into space, and we are unsure of the exact timing of this possibility. However, the space tourism sector continues to be accessible to everyone in its various manifestations (museums, stargazing, rocket launches, etc.).
Who was the first person to tour space?
The first person to ever reach space was the cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, who made history in that capacity. Before being admitted into the Soviet space program in March 1960, he rose from poor beginnings to the senior lieutenant fighter in the Soviet Air Forces as a pilot. He was launched into orbit on April 12, 1961, a little over a year later, from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in modern-day Kazakhstan. In his spacecraft, the Vostok 1, he spent 108 minutes in orbit around the Earth.
He returned to Earth in his capsule formally. However, he later discovered that he parachuted to safety when it was still 7 kilometers above the Earth. Just three and a half years after launching Sputnik 1, the first artificial satellite, the Soviet Union achieved another technical and public relations triumph with the launch of this spacecraft.
The perfect poster guy was Gagarin. He was the idealistic, attractive, humble, and hardworking son of a carpenter and a dairy farmer who worked on a communal farm. He represented the Soviet Union on the western side of the Iron Curtain. He went on a global tour, received honors from other leaders, and was hailed as a hero by students worldwide.
Weeks later, on May 5, the US succeeded in sending a person into space—Alan Shepard, who would later walk on the moon. However, this was only for a brief sub-orbital journey. However, the challenge was accepted when, on May 25, President John F. Kennedy declared, in front of a special meeting of the US Congress, that an American would set foot on the moon before the decade was up. It was at this point that the Apollo program officially began.
Gagarin himself never again took to the skies. He was murdered in a mysterious aircraft accident in 1968 at the young age of 34, which sparked rumors that he was assassinated for being more well-liked than the dictatorship he represented.
Companies that provide space tourism services?
Each space tourism business that presently enables clients to purchase tickets or, at the very least, ask about upcoming flights is described here. These businesses might help you fulfill your dream of traveling to space.
SpaceX
A commercial business known as SpaceX is responsible for the construction and launch of rockets into space. It is crucial to realize that Elon Musk, the same guy who established PayPal and Tesla Motors, also founded SpaceX. This is necessary to comprehend the function that SpaceX plays in the industry of space tourism.
One of the most successful and innovative private firms in the world today is SpaceX. It designs, fabricates, and launches advanced rockets and spacecraft for commercial and government clients.
Space Adventures
Space Adventures is the first firm you should contact if you want to get a ticket now and go to space. It has been the only business since 1998 to take paying consumers into space. Seven individuals paid to stay between 7 and 16 days on the International Space Station between 2001 and 2009.
Virgin Galactic
Passengers will board the VSS Unity for a customized spaceplane journey offered by Virgin Galactic. After leaving the mother aircraft, you’ll launch into space and out to the edge of the universe. You’ll feel weightlessness and see the Earth’s curvature as you descend. There are already 650 persons holding tickets for upcoming flights at the current price of $250 000 per person.
Blue Origin
The other significant space tourism business was started by Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon and founder of Blue Origin, back in 2000. Bezos wants Blue Origin to provide space tourist launches and commercial launch services.
Unlike Virgin Galactic, Blue Origin intends to carry visitors to the edge of space using rockets and passenger capsules. Ascending to an altitude of around 300,000 feet after boarding the passenger capsule atop a New Shepard rocket, you’ll experience weightlessness before starting your journey down to Earth. A ticket on Blue Origin costs $250,000, but if you need to go to space quickly, the waiting list is a little shorter than Virgin Galactic.
Boeing
Along with SpaceX, Boeing is the second corporation hired to transport humans to the International Space Station. On specific launches, Boeing will have vacant seats as part of their arrangement, which they are theoretically allowed to sell to visitors. Although NASA must first approve any trips to the ISS, the agency hinted in early 2019 that they would consider the possibility in the future for a fee of $35,000 per night.
How to book the ticket?
There are already aerospace businesses that are accepting reservations for space trips, and there are also aerospace companies that have intentions to begin taking reservations in the not-too-distant future. The most straightforward approach to guarantee that you will be able to go on the vacation of a lifetime is to ensure that you are up to speed on all of the most recent news and space tourism information released by the above organizations.
How much does it cost to go as a space tourist?
Space tourism is all the rage these days but it comes with a hefty price tag. A single person’s expense for a journey into suborbital space might range anywhere from $100,000 to $250,000. The cost of an orbital trip, which is the kind that would put you into orbit around the globe, is significantly higher, and it ranges anywhere from $200 million to $300 million per passenger.
Suborbital flights have cheaper expenses than orbital flights since they are shorter than orbital flights. Suborbital flights only carry passengers around 100 miles above sea level and then return them. These journeys take around 4 minutes one way (including launch time).
When you take an orbital flight, the pilot will take you to a point at least 200 miles above sea level and up to 250 miles from the surface of the planet called low Earth orbit. Here, you will remain for several hours before returning to your home planet approximately every 90 minutes until all of your fuel is used up during re-entry into our atmosphere.
Suborbital flight options are likely to be the most popular choice among those curious about participating in space tourism. This is because suborbital flights are less expensive and more secure than orbital trips, requiring more advanced technology to ensure that all passengers return home without injury.
