Hello space enthusiasts. Welcome to another interesting video. Have you heard about space tourism? Let’s discuss it in today’s video. Space tourism has been a dream of humans for centuries. With the advent of commercial space travel, that dream is now a reality. But how much will it cost you? Will space travel in the future be cheaper? Without further ado let’s dive in.
The Cost of Commercial Space Travel: How Far is it From the Average American’s Budget?
Guys, when space tourism company Blue Origin sent a test dummy (named Mannequin Skywalker) into space, it cost the company around $300,000. This is just a fraction of the cost for space tourists who want to go to space. While Blue Origin is one of the more affordable space tourism companies, it’s still out of reach for the average American. So, what is the cost of commercial space travel? And how far away from the average American’s budget is it? Will space travel in the future be within your reach? Any guess……..?
Friends, commercial space travel is becoming more and more popular as people become more and more fascinated with the idea of traveling to space but many people are unsure about whether or not space tourism will ever be within their budget.
In today’s video, we will break down the cost of space travel and see just how out-of-reach it may be for most people.
What exactly is Space Tourism?
Space tourism is the term used for space travel that is open to the general public. This includes space flights, space hotels, space expeditions, etc.
Guys, there are a few different companies that offer space tourism services, including Blue Origin, SpaceX, Virgin Galactic, XCOR Aerospace, and Space Adventures. These companies offer different packages at different prices – but in general, they are always expensive! Sigh….. However, the hope that space travel in the future will be accessible to everyone never dies.
But this price does not include the cost of training or traveling to the launch site. Space tourism is still in its early days, so the cost of space travel is likely to go up as more people become interested in space tourism. So don’t wait too long if you’re curious about space tourism – the prices may soon be out of reach for most people!
Talking about Space flights, these can range from short “suborbital” flights that last a few minutes to trips that last multiple days and cover thousands of miles.
Space hotels: Unfortunately, there are no space hotels, but this is an area that is sure to grow in popularity in the coming years.
Space expeditions: Space expeditions are trips to destinations like the moon or Mars. But fellas they are typically much more expensive than space flights or space hotels and can cost millions of dollars.
Space tourism has been around for a few years now, and the industry is only going to grow in popularity. As technology develops, space travel becomes less expensive. I hope so…. So we can expect space travel in the future to become more popular and accessible.
Why does Space Tourism Matter?
Let’s talk about why does space tourism matter?
Well, space tourism is important because it provides you with the opportunity to explore space. It also allows you to experience zero gravity and see Earth from space. These unique experiences can be, you know, life-changing for some people, and they are well worth the high cost of space travel.
In addition, space tourism supports the development of new technology that can be used in spaceflight and other industries. So, by supporting space tourism, you’re actually supporting many different aspects of space exploration! Sounds quite exciting… No?
As we mentioned earlier, space tourism is still in its early days. This means that there are many opportunities for growth within the industry. As more people become interested in space travel, the prices will likely go down – making space tourism more accessible to everyone! Yeah… Let me share some thrilling aspects of space tourism.
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It will inspire a new generation of engineers:
One of the most important aspects of space tourism in my point of view is that it inspires young people to pursue careers in science and engineering. When kids see people traveling to space, they are more likely to be interested in learning about space and pursuing a career in space-related fields. This is extremely important, as we need more engineers and scientists if we want to continue exploring space!
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Space tourism provides unique experiences:
As I mentioned earlier, one of the main reasons why space tourism is important is because it offers people unique experiences that cannot be found anywhere else. Right? From experiencing zero gravity to seeing Earth from space, space tourism allows people to explore different aspects of our universe. These experiences can be life-changing for some people, and they are well worth the high cost of space travel.
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A failure is now an option:
Another important aspect is the involvement of the private sector in space exploration. With the involvement of private companies in the Space sector, space exploration is no longer the sole domain of Governments. Companies like SpaceX, Blue Origin, Virgin Galactics, etc., have no restrictions until the money runs out. This allows for a variety of space missions and objectives to be tried, some of which may not have been possible with Governmental space agencies. Private space companies also tend to be more open about sharing failures (and successes) than their counterparts in the public sector which I quite appreciate. With this new openness, space exploration as a whole can learn from its mistakes at a much faster pace!
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The cost of reaching space will go down:
Guys at present if you want to send a satellite to space, then it will cost you around $12 million on average. Companies like SpaceX and Virgin Galactic have successfully tested reusable spacecraft. If these next-gen space planes can conduct sub-orbital flights and come back to earth, it will greatly reduce the cost of getting into space.
But… the thing is… we still have a lot to learn about space and space travel in the future will still change and evolve a lot. Even though we’ve sent humans into space and explored many different aspects, we still know very little about the universe. With the rise of space tourism, we’ll be able to learn more about space by sending people up there for extended periods of time. This is important because it helps us better understand our place in the universe and may even lead to new discoveries!
Breaking down the cost of commercial space travel – will it ever be in the average American’s budget?
From SpaceX’s multi-day orbital voyage to Virgin Galactic’s suborbital ride, space tourism offers people unique experiences that cannot be found anywhere else. Here is a list of the top space tourism packages that are made public by space travel companies.
Roscosmos: A Customized Trip to the International Space Station
Roscosmos offers you a 12-day trip to the ISS for $50 to $60 million. The Flight altitude is 408 kilometers. If you are interested, then be happy, its tickets are available for booking
Axiom Space/SpaceX: Vacation on the International Space Station
It offers an amazing package of a 10-day trip to the ISS + a weeklong stay in the orbital lab for $55 million with a 408 kilometers Flight altitude. But… it will be available by the end of 2022.
SpaceX: Multi-Day Orbital Voyage
You can get a 3-day stay in SpaceX’s Dragon capsule for $55 million at an altitude of 574 kilometers. Its tickets are available for booking.
Blue Origin: Quick Spacecraft Trip to the Kármán line (the boundary between earth’s atmosphere and the outer space)
You can enjoy a 12-minute ride at the flight altitude of 100 kilometers to the Kármán line for $28 million. It’s operational and you can book your tickets.
Virgin Galactic: Suborbital Joy Ride
It offers you a 90-minute joy ride to 50 kilometers above sea level + a zero-gravity experience for $450,000. Tickets are available for booking.
Space Perspective: “Hot Air Balloon” to Stratosphere
It gives you a 6-hour relaxing ride to the stratosphere in a pressurized capsule for $125,000. It will be available from 2024 and the Flight altitude will be 30 kilometers.
You see guys, space tourism is not cheap. The tickets for the Blue Origin and SpaceX rides are already selling out fast! However, space exploration companies are expecting the cost of space travel to go down in the next few years as reusable spacecraft become more common. With that in mind, space tourism may one day be within reach of the average American budget! Are you looking forward to that day?
In a nutshell, space tourism is not cheap – but, you see, prices are dropping, and it’s only a matter of time until space travel becomes more accessible for everyone! So what are you waiting for? Start saving up for your trip to outer space! Good luck with the fascinating journey to space. I’ll take your leave now… see you in another exciting video. Goodbye….
Excellent article and video.
Thanks for sharing ♥