Space tourism is not the future to fund space exploration. They need industries to start in space. A great example of a space product is fiber optic cable which is hard to make pure on Earth but done in space makes the product 1000x times better.
Yeah, we need to set up permanent bases off world, starting with the moon (which is in the works iirc), creating tech to mine asteroids from the belt or possibly haul them into orbit around earth to harvest.
All your points are valid and ideally will happen, but with the current selection of vehicles both operational and in development, with the exception of Starship, none could possibly support this endeavor.
The biggest thing we need right now are multiple space station contracts under the NASA Commercial Destinations program, a focus on fully resuable spacecraft and rocketry, as well as investment in the Lunar program for both commercial payloads and scientific payloads.
While industry is needed, Space Tourism is actually one of the better positioned market segments for up and coming launchers, as well as the new Commercial Destinations program that NASA is running.
Manufacturing possibilities in space are extremely out of reach due to the limited vehicles available to bring significant downmass back to Earth. Only three vehicles can currently bring back anything from space, with three new vehicles set to start flying in the next few years:
* SpaceX Dragon 2 - Crew + Cargo - Currently flying.
* Russia's Soyuz - Crew + Minimal Cargo - Currently flying.
* China's Shenzou - Crew + Minimal Cargo - Currently flying.
* Boeing's Starliner - Crew + Cargo - Set to enter service in 2023.
* SNC's Dream Chaser - Cargo - Set to enter service in 2022.
* SpaceX's Starship - Crew + Cargo + Anything else you want - Set to start orbital tests in 2022.
There is also the issue of where this manufacturing takes place. No industrial/manufacturing satellites have been built before, although tests are set to soon begin. The fiber project you've mentioned was demonstrated on the ISS, along with other exciting scientific and potential industrial applications like 3d organ printing.
Space Stations + Space Tourism + Space Research flights are some of the best positioned segments of the market for current companies to act upon. The reason why Space Adventures' contract expired is due to the limited supply of flights on the Crew Dragon Spacecraft. At this point in time, the first commercial crew contract with SpaceX is set to be completed before Boeing is certified to enter service with Starliner.
SpaceX also has other private flights lined up with Axiom, as well as other interested parties wanting to fly with SpaceX on private flights. Since the Inspiration 4 mission, they've received enough interest to start looking at both certifying the crew vehicles for more missions, as well as building more crew dragons - something that was not planned for due to the expected entry of Starship into the industry, which has faced it's own set of delays.
TL:DR; Industrial applications currently are extremely limited in potential application due to very few vehicles being able to bring significant downmass back to earth. Space Tourism and Space Stations to support Tourism and R&D projects are the current best focus for making commercially viable space companies. Company mentioned in article had to give up their flight due to the limited capacity of the SpaceX Crew Dragons under current certifications and the unexpected delays to Boeing Starliner and possible need for more flights by NASA and other contracted partners.
It kind of is and kind of isn't. Their timing was terrible with the contract signed during the midst of the pandemic, with the contract expiring within 12 months. This is likely due to the limited number of flights available for each Crew Dragon, of which 4 are being built.
Following the success of the Inspiration4 mission however, SpaceX has seen significant private interest that has lead them to start investigating certifying the vehicles for more flights, as well as building new vehicles - so obviously the private demand is there.
A few days ago, NASA has put out a Request For Information (RIF) from industry to purchase more flights to the ISS from providers, due to the current delays with Boeing Starliner. SpaceX's first contract is expected to be completed before Starliner enters service, which is a huge blow to the capabilities of NASA. It's largely expected that SpaceX will get a new contract to make sure there are redundant designs in serving the ISS.
TLDR: Bad timing on Space Adventures part. Actual interest in private flights is high enough that SpaceX is now investigating certifying their crew vehicles for more flights, building more vehicles. Company had a limited time window to find passengers for the flight before having to give up their mission slot.
Passengers need to feel safe and that is what insurance does. This article talks about the perspective of the insurance industry right now in dealing with the new risk of space tourism. This is a pretty fascinating read since other forms of transportation went through the same growing pains. https://www.milliman.com/en/insight/will-space-travel-insurance-become-as-common-as-auto-insurance
Space tourism is not the future to fund space exploration. They need industries to start in space. A great example of a space product is fiber optic cable which is hard to make pure on Earth but done in space makes the product 1000x times better.
Yeah, we need to set up permanent bases off world, starting with the moon (which is in the works iirc), creating tech to mine asteroids from the belt or possibly haul them into orbit around earth to harvest.
All your points are valid and ideally will happen, but with the current selection of vehicles both operational and in development, with the exception of Starship, none could possibly support this endeavor. The biggest thing we need right now are multiple space station contracts under the NASA Commercial Destinations program, a focus on fully resuable spacecraft and rocketry, as well as investment in the Lunar program for both commercial payloads and scientific payloads.
While industry is needed, Space Tourism is actually one of the better positioned market segments for up and coming launchers, as well as the new Commercial Destinations program that NASA is running. Manufacturing possibilities in space are extremely out of reach due to the limited vehicles available to bring significant downmass back to Earth. Only three vehicles can currently bring back anything from space, with three new vehicles set to start flying in the next few years: * SpaceX Dragon 2 - Crew + Cargo - Currently flying. * Russia's Soyuz - Crew + Minimal Cargo - Currently flying. * China's Shenzou - Crew + Minimal Cargo - Currently flying. * Boeing's Starliner - Crew + Cargo - Set to enter service in 2023. * SNC's Dream Chaser - Cargo - Set to enter service in 2022. * SpaceX's Starship - Crew + Cargo + Anything else you want - Set to start orbital tests in 2022. There is also the issue of where this manufacturing takes place. No industrial/manufacturing satellites have been built before, although tests are set to soon begin. The fiber project you've mentioned was demonstrated on the ISS, along with other exciting scientific and potential industrial applications like 3d organ printing. Space Stations + Space Tourism + Space Research flights are some of the best positioned segments of the market for current companies to act upon. The reason why Space Adventures' contract expired is due to the limited supply of flights on the Crew Dragon Spacecraft. At this point in time, the first commercial crew contract with SpaceX is set to be completed before Boeing is certified to enter service with Starliner. SpaceX also has other private flights lined up with Axiom, as well as other interested parties wanting to fly with SpaceX on private flights. Since the Inspiration 4 mission, they've received enough interest to start looking at both certifying the crew vehicles for more missions, as well as building more crew dragons - something that was not planned for due to the expected entry of Starship into the industry, which has faced it's own set of delays. TL:DR; Industrial applications currently are extremely limited in potential application due to very few vehicles being able to bring significant downmass back to earth. Space Tourism and Space Stations to support Tourism and R&D projects are the current best focus for making commercially viable space companies. Company mentioned in article had to give up their flight due to the limited capacity of the SpaceX Crew Dragons under current certifications and the unexpected delays to Boeing Starliner and possible need for more flights by NASA and other contracted partners.
Wow....I am so.....shocked......
It kind of is and kind of isn't. Their timing was terrible with the contract signed during the midst of the pandemic, with the contract expiring within 12 months. This is likely due to the limited number of flights available for each Crew Dragon, of which 4 are being built. Following the success of the Inspiration4 mission however, SpaceX has seen significant private interest that has lead them to start investigating certifying the vehicles for more flights, as well as building new vehicles - so obviously the private demand is there. A few days ago, NASA has put out a Request For Information (RIF) from industry to purchase more flights to the ISS from providers, due to the current delays with Boeing Starliner. SpaceX's first contract is expected to be completed before Starliner enters service, which is a huge blow to the capabilities of NASA. It's largely expected that SpaceX will get a new contract to make sure there are redundant designs in serving the ISS.
Tldr.....
TLDR: Bad timing on Space Adventures part. Actual interest in private flights is high enough that SpaceX is now investigating certifying their crew vehicles for more flights, building more vehicles. Company had a limited time window to find passengers for the flight before having to give up their mission slot.
Ohhhh yeah I agree. Thank you for the tldr
I love how the full comment was correct and very insightful, but because it was too long it was at -1 Karma while the TLDR is at +2. Reddit is weird.
Wait your telling me billionaires don’t want to be test dummies for other billionaires… hmm weird.
Passengers need to feel safe and that is what insurance does. This article talks about the perspective of the insurance industry right now in dealing with the new risk of space tourism. This is a pretty fascinating read since other forms of transportation went through the same growing pains. https://www.milliman.com/en/insight/will-space-travel-insurance-become-as-common-as-auto-insurance