Do you want to fly into space? Six years later, you might find yourself in a space suit traveling across the galaxy. The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) has announced that it expects to start space tourism by 2030 at a cost of Rs 6 crore per passenger.
Work is in full swing for India to have its own space tourism module that is safe, durable and reusable. And people who travel in space can also be called astronauts, according to ISRO.
It is too early to comment on whether the proposed space travel will be orbital or sub-orbital.
However, given the module’s high cost of Rs 6 crore, it is likely that suborbital space travel will be the option.
The main difference between orbital and suborbital flights is the speed of the traveling object.
Essentially, suborbital travel involves a brief glimpse of space before returning to earth, while orbital flight involves maintaining an orbit. In order to avoid falling to the ground, this involves flying around the globe incredibly fast.
We are currently in a new era of space tourism, with an increasing number of people leaving Earth for limited periods thanks to private companies that specialize in such ventures.
And in the coming times, regular long-term space travel may even become a reality.
Space tourism has seen growing demand and fascination with the world’s top billionaires – including Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk – starting trials for space travel.
Space tourism, once seen as something out of a sci-fi movie, is now becoming a reality.
Richard Branson made history in July 2021 by outpacing competitor Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin with a fully crewed Virgin Galactic spacecraft.
In July 2021, British billionaire Richard Branson made history by launching a fully crewed Virgin Galactic spacecraft, ahead of Bezos’ rival Blue Origin.
Branson’s successful mission was not just a victory for the “billionaires in space.”
It also signals the beginning of a new era that could allow amateur astronauts to travel to space outside of government programs. This will help open up the space industry.
Depending on the company’s technological capabilities, the features that space tourism offers and the cost per person can vary dramatically.
As a result of this disparity, there are noticeable differences in cost, experience, and even the risk of becoming a space traveler.
For example, Blue Origin launches vertically like most rockets, while Virgin Galactic launches its rocket spacecraft from the belly of an airplane.
Although these two companies — each of which has launched passengers into space — are the only suborbital ventures approved by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for launches, other companies are preparing for liftoff.
Since SpaceX is an orbital spacecraft and Bezos’ Blue Origin and Branson’s Virgin Galactic are suborbital, Musk’s travel package is roughly 200 times more expensive than the other two.
The scope of orbital space tourism was limited to a few missions carried out using the Soviet Soyuz spacecraft from the International Space Station.
But SpaceX has already entered this area with the launch of the Crew Dragon capsule and the Falcon 9 rocket.
For the first time, SpaceX sent two NASA astronauts into orbit and brought them back, making the mission not only historic for Musk’s business, but also for the US space agency.
SpaceX has managed to achieve what was previously only done by government bodies: sending humans into orbit.
SpaceX’s successful launch of three different astronaut flights has reduced the cost of space travel by millions and benefited NASA greatly.
SpaceX is also developing its upgraded Starship rocket. This is the main goal for Musk. He wants to create a reusable rocket system that can catapult 100 passengers or tons of goods at once.
Bezos also has his eye on the future. Like Elon Musk’s SpaceX, Blue Origin also aims to help NASA return to the moon by developing space infrastructure.
To compete with SpaceX’s Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy, Blue Origin is developing the massive New Glenn rocket.
But Bezos’ Blue Origin recently suffered a setback and had to suspend operations for a while.
The company is now aiming to fully recover and be back in shape by the end of 2023.
There is still much to be done in the development of space tourism.
Although Bezos, Branson and Musk are established names in space technology, many new competitors are emerging.
Perhaps this will pave the way for lower costs of space tourism, thus allowing more people to enjoy space travel.