Space Tourism and Beyond

Almost two decades ago the frst space tourist, Dennis Tito, paid an alleged $20 million for the breath-taking view of Earth from outer space. The Russian Soyuz aircraft few him to the International Space Station, which orbits the Earth at 408km above sea level. Recently, Elon Musk’s company, SpaceX, announced plans for their frst passenger, a billionaire Japanese fashion mogul, to be launched on a journey around the Moon in 2023. The once mysterious realms of the sky are now becoming a recreational playground. But is this technology only a plaything for super-rich adrenaline junkies, or will the rocket science open more doors?

Elon Musk’s SpaceX claims that its ultimate mission is to provide access for mankind to other planets. With a soaring human population, rapid consumption of Earth’s resources, and a climate crisis, this idea may seem sensible. However, there is a long road ahead of us before we can dream of public space transportation. Building orbital spacefight technology, such as that of SpaceX’s lunar orbit project, is immensely challenging and, therefore, exorbitantly expensive. But the frontrunners in space tourism, SpaceX, Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic are also ramping up to something sub-orbital.

Sub-orbital technology could be the next big advancement in air transport, whilst being more practical and economical than orbital space fights. fights they can turn sci-f into reality by making intercontinental travel shorter than your Marvel movie. Imagine fying from London to Sydney with barely a chance to dig into your bland airline breakfast. Sub-orbital fights require a lower velocity than orbital fights and undergo a parabolic trajectory, which means that they land back on the surface of the Earth without completing an orbit. Though it sounds good on paper, some reviewers believe that sub-orbital point-to-point transportation may be only marginally cheaper than orbital fights. According to Phillip Atclife, senior lecturer in aeronautical engineering at University of Salford, Manchester, ‘In terms of manned fight, as opposed to military missiles, we’re right at the start. Crawling rather than walking, and don’t even think about running for a while’.

Nonetheless, the race is on for commercial, recreational space trips. Sub-orbital and vertical trajectory fights can cross the Kármán line, which marks the start of space 100km above sea level and provide tourists with the thrill of experiencing weightlessness and viewing the Earth’s form as Tito did. Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic was the frst to sell tickets for its commercial spacefights ready to commence in 2015, but the mission remained unaccomplished following a test fight accident. This highlights the infancy of commercial space travel and the need for rigorous research and development. Oxford’s Hypersonics group at the Thermofuids Institute is at the forefront of experimental research on high-speed fights relevant for access to space.

Of course, commercial spacefight comes with a barrage of unknowns. It is unclear how such new technologies might impact the environment compared to current commercial fights. Its long-term efects on human physiology are currently impossible to determine. With space tourism currently inaccessible to you and me, can we get on board with the idea of pouring billions into an industry built for the future, when there may be more pressing issues to solve on Earth in the present? The comfortable continuation of mankind is something we all wish upon our future generations. So perhaps short space-hops for the rich and super-fast intercontinental fights are the necessary bridge to developing building the gateway technology for a future getaway to our new homes. Atreyi Chakrabarty is studying for a PhD in Neuroscience at St Cross College.