The idea of space tourism has been around for quite a while now with several millionaires expressing a serious interest in paying for a trip into outer space. First touted by science fiction writers, in the last few years the idea seems to have gained some pace and looks like it may become a reality fairly soon.
Branson’s Virgin Group founded a company called Virgin Galactic in 2004 with the stated aim of flying non trained tourists on sub-orbital and eventually orbital flights. The first flights will go to an altitude of 62 miles and allow the passengers to experience weightlessness for a cost of $200,000 each. Apparently the price tag hasn’t proved a barrier and they claim to have sold over 200 tickets already but the date the flight will take place remains a mystery.
Virgin Galactic have spent the last few years developing an aircraft called White Knight Two which is a bizarre two hulled aircraft which will carry the Space Ship Two to it’s blast off height. The new crafts were developed after customers complained that the first craft was only going to take them to the edge of space and they expected more for their money. The new crafts will allow them to experience weightlessness and this seems to have satisfied them. The carrier aircraft has already made a successful test flight in Mojave, California but the Space Ship Two that it will carry is still in development. Virgin Galactic have ordered five of the Space Ship Two rockets which carry two pilots and six passengers each and two of White Knight Two carrier crafts.
The tests are continuing and since the average age of the first group of passengers is over fifty they are going to pains to ensure that the entire process is safe. The worry is that the elderly passengers won’t cope with the G-forces that they will experience when the rocket fires.
Over the Christmas period it was announced that Virgin Galactic had signed a deal with the State of New Mexico. A 20 year lease agreement which cost in the hundreds of millions of dollars has been signed and New Mexico will be the location of Spaceport America.
The Spaceport will be the hub for all flights and the interest stirred up by space travel is expected to create many jobs and spark tourism in the area. The design is now complete and construction is due to start early this year with the next round of funding already in place. Virgin Galactic may be the first to sign the lease agreement and agree to base their headquarters in New Mexico but several other aerospace companies are also in talks with the Spaceport Authority.
The tests continue and obviously the safety of the passengers will be the chief concern before any flights are liable to go ahead. However the fact that there are now several companies pursuing the idea and a growing queue of rich would-be astronauts desperate to hop onboard may make this a reality sooner rather than later. The first flights are currently scheduled for 2009.