How many of you have had extraterrestrial ambitions of kissing the edge of space in your childhood? It’s quite apparent to fantasize about a space trip when you have all the money, power, and a spacecraft at your disposal, isn’t it?
And with all of these so-called “billionaire rights,” the trio of Richard Branson, Jeff Bezos, and Elon Musk has already planned their first joyride to space and Branson leading the billionaire space race against the two.
What Is The Motto Behind Their Space Expedition?
On 11 July, Richard Branson with three other workers from the Virgin Group travelled to space and experienced weightlessness for several minutes in a winged vehicle, SpaceShipTwo, which was air-launched by a supersonic plane created by Virgin Galactic.
Just over a week later, on July 20, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos will board the New Shepard capsule as a passenger on Blue Origin’s first crewed mission.
Many speculated that the quirky personalities and egoism of the world’s richest people drove them towards the sky. Few called it an ‘ego trip’, while many criticized their space expeditions as a means of proving their supremacy over the other.
Sounding more like a competition, this space ride has a motto behind it; the organization, reach, and aims are quite similar to one another. To accomplish their long-held ambition, the two billionaires travelled to promote space tourism. The main motto is to make space a place for tourists and not only astronauts.
Also Read: Watch: 8 Mind-Bending Space Facts We Bet You Did Not Know
The Virgin Galactic has already started showing its results by getting 600 bookings from people across the world in just a week! Space Tourism is however going to be the greatest achievement of SpaceX, Virgin Galactic, and Blue Origin.
But here are a few complications that question space tourism.
How Feasible Is Space Tourism?
While Branson and Bezos’ space missions are significant milestones for their space tourism businesses, the space sector is still a long way from being able to provide its services to the general public.
Going to space, unsurprisingly, comes at a high cost. Tickets to space, which cost between $200,000 and $250,000 per person, are certainly for the wealthy and ambitious who want to have fun in a gravity-free zone.
This will restrict the general public from going to space and create discrimination amongst the richer and not-so wealthier groups of people.
Space tourism will also have a negative influence on the Earth’s climate. According to a study published in Advancing Earth and Space Science, space rockets can dramatically enhance temperatures at the poles due to increasing black carbon emissions.
Furthermore, space tourism might be risky! Even if they can pay all of the trip expenditures, they may not be physically or mentally prepared for this voyage which will beforehand make them incapable to fly.
Space tourism is considered to be a luxury for almost 90% of the population on Earth. Even if it’s promoted by the billionaires, it will only benefit a small portion of the population.
Amidst the crisis which includes the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, vast wealth inequities, uncanny climate changes, and poor healthcare services in the world, the proposal of Space Tourism might sound absurd and not a need of the hour.
Do you think promoting space tourism will result positively? Let us know in the comments below.
Image Credits: Google Images
Sources: The Quint; CNN; Hindustan Times
Find the blogger: @chiinniiiii
The post is tagged under: Space; Jeff Bezos; Richard Branson; Elon Musk; space tourism; Billionaire Space tourism; Billionaire space race; airspace; Virgin galactic; Blue origin; SpaceX; Elon Musk’s SpaceX; travel to space; Virgin group; pandemic time; COVID-19; Earth science; Space Science; astronauts; astronomy; extra-terrestrial activities; extra-terrestrial creatures; world billionaires in the world; Branson; Musk; Bezos; Spacecraft; rocket; spaceship
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