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Space tourism introduction
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Over fifty years ago, when Yuri Gagarin crossed the Earth’s orbit, his spacecraft was not even equipped to land with crew on board. Today, we have landed 12 humans on the moon and maintain a permanently manned space station – with this level of advancement in space exploration, the trend towards its commercialization is an obvious development.
Space tourists are travelers who pay for their passage into space. The trend started with entrepreneurs like Dennis Tito and Mark Shuttleworth paying upwards of $20 million for a trip to the International Space Station. Since then, over 50 different companies world-over are actively investing and lobbying to make commercial spaceflights a regular feature of the future. Given the limited number of spacefaring nations today, these companies are largely based in USA and Russia, with other
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ISRO required less investment to send Chandrayaan to Mars, than Hollywood did to make Gravity – and that impressively small budget was, to a great extent, attributed to the lower cost of Indian engineering. In 2011, the University of Petroleum and Energy Studies Dehradun, under Professor Ram Jakhu of the Institute of Air and Space Law, Mcgill University, conducted a pilot study exploring the scope of a space tourism industry in India, which suggests that India, by using this key advantage, could reduce the overall cost of commercial space travel and become a major competitor in the commercial spaceflight sector. At present, anyone looking to buy a seat to outer space with, say, Virgin Galactic, will have to dish out roughly $200,000. If India can bring that figure down to $150,000, it will not only be a competitive player in the market, but will also have created a domestic market for space tourism amongst its own upper crust, which could consist of up to 15,000 passengers a
The moment astronauts set foot on Earth’s Moon, in July of 1969, the legacy of the United States’ space program changed forever. Countless Americans watched the launch and landing of Apollo 13 on their televisions with pride on that day, proud of their country for achieving such an insane goal as walking on the Moon. While NASA, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, struggled through obstacle after obstacle, invented new technologies and advanced old ones, placed the first man on the Moon, because the Soviet Union threatened to beat the U.S. to the space frontier, the nation greatly congratulated the feat that began the technological era. After forty-five years, however, the awe Americans held over NASA’s programs dwindled considerably. Although NASA no longer holds the nation in awe over their moon mission achievements, NASA programs remain vital to the United States because they advance everyday technologies, inspire creative visions, and discover greater knowledge for the entire public to benefit from.
On the day of May 25, 1961 the president(John F. Kennedy) has announced that he(NASA) wanted to accomplish sending a man to the moon and having him return safely back to Earth by the end of the century. And finally, eight years after he made this speech NASA had made an Apollo program and in July 20, 1969 they had successfully met the presidents challenge. The astronaughts that we’re sent to space were Neil Armstrong and Edwin “Buzz” they were the first people to have ever step foot on the moon. One quote that everyone has hear is “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for man kind”.
Since the launch of Sputnik 1, Russia and America continually compete against one another in the exploration of space. The idea of exploring a new frontier intrigued the citizens of both countries. The race to achieve the first successful launch into space created the institution of two independent space programs, the Soviet Space Program and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Since their origins, the agencies contrasted in mission procedures, construction, and view of space’s applications. Though the two programs ultimately amalgamated to further exploration and elevate productivity, Russia proves the victor as it dominates the gateway to space. The current application for Russia occurs with the retirement of the space shuttle program, where the U.S. dependency transpires with each visit to the International Space Station (ISS). The first few crucial factors that differentiate each program resulted from alternate methods, procedures, and test subjects for their missions. The types of vehicles, space stations, and experimentation varied significantly between the agencies of each country. A final consequential piece of the organizations culminated with the joint venture to construct the ISS and promote the space program. When Roscosmos and NASA joined together, other countries of the program increased their efforts, however the United States and Russia continued to dominate the majority of the construction of the ISS. Though the two nations competed against one another, each hoping to gain victory, the majority of society remains unaware that the idea, which initiated the Space Race, arose from a Nazi rocket developer Wernher von Braun. “From his teenage years, von Braun had held a keen interest in space flig...
On May 25, 1961, just two weeks after the US had successfully got an American into space, John F. Kennedy gave a speech addressing it and exclaimed, "I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to the Earth. No single space project...will be more exciting, or more impressive to mankind, or more important...and none will be so difficult or expensive to accomplish..." (Kruse). The Space Race became an important event for all of humanity during the 20th century because it improved our knowledge of space, improved and inspired new technology, and improved our education. It sparked a mix of both friendly and non friendly competition between the Capitalist United States and the Communist Russia (USSR) from the launch of Sputnik in 1957, all the way to the Apollo-Soyuz project that ended the race in 1975 .
As a country we need to start investing more money and research into space technology. Programs currently exist for this effort, but the potential for research and progress is limited by a lack of funding; compared to other government funded programs, aerospace funding is pitiful. Continued research in space technology is a necessary step in our growth and development not just as a country but also as entire human race. If we are to achieve this goal, it is necessary to increase funding for space research and technology and consider the possibility of colonizing outer space. If we limit our existence to the planet Earth, and continue to drain the resources on this planet, we will destroy the only home we have.
On July 20, 1969, three brave American astronauts, “Neil Armstrong, Michael Collins and Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin, became the first humans ever to land on the moon” (1). The Space Race changed the American people by climaxing tensions between America and the USSR during the Cold War, gave hope to the American citizens that the nation could withstand and challenge, changed American culture and also gave many engineers and scientists of the age work and stability.
The space race was the product of the Cold War. It was an effort to prove technological superiority but on the other hand, it was also feared on both sides that weapons of mass destruction will be placed in orbit. In 1957, the Soviet Union sent the 184 pound Sputnik 1 satellite into Earth’s orbit. It was the first artificial satellite and the first manmade object to be placed into Earth’s orbit. Following that, they also sent the first animal into space, Laika the dog. In 1958, the United Sates also launched their first satellite into orbit, dubbed Explorer 1. The Soviet space program advanced once again in 1959. The Soviet Union launched Luna 2, which was the first space probe to hit the moon. In April 1961, the Soviet Union had the ultimate success, sending the first human into space. The name of the Russian cosmonaut was Yuri Gagarin, who made a 108 minute suborbital flight in a Vostok 1 spacecraft. One month after that, Alan Shepard became the American in space aboard the Freedom 7 spacecraft. Continuing from there, each nation step...
It is within man’s blood and nature to explore, and space is our next New World. Man’s first achievement in space travel was the launch of the Sputnik on October 4, 1957. For the next decades, space travel was roaring like a rocket, fueled by man’s desire to explore, man’s desire for knowledge, and man’s desire to beat his enemies. However, these impulses have died out as the well of government funding has been diverted to wars and debts, and the interest of the American people has been diverted to wars and debts. Amidst all these issues it is debated as to whether or not space travel is worth the money and the attention of scientists, particularly since humanity faces so many issues on earth currently. However, because of the past inventions, current services, and future benefits, space travel is indeed worth the money and attention of governments and people. It is within our hands to control man’s advancement, and space travel is the next venue to do so.
A day may come with the public will change its opinion to be contrary to the one shown in Greenberg’s cartoon, but until that day comes, space tourism is not practical. It has been forecast to bring in a large amount of revenue, but the current cost versus the amount of money expected to be made yields little to no profit. A serious business like space travel cannot survive with no profit. The cost of refueling, repairs, and maintenance of the shuttles is substantial. Profit would have to be made to make the endeavor worth continuing. As it stands the cost of launching a ship is far too expensive and dangerous to be worth the effort of pursing it for commercial
Carl Sagan once said “every planetary civilization will be endangered by impacts from space, every surviving civilization is obliged to become spacefaring—not because of exploratory or romantic zeal, but for the most practical reason imaginable: staying alive. If our long-term survival is at stake, we have a basic responsibility to our species to venture to other worlds.” The National Aeronautics and Space Administration, or NASA, is executing Sagan’s words every day. President Dwight D. Eisenhower created NASA in 1958 with the purpose of peaceful rather than military space exploration and research to contribute to society. Just 11 years after the creation, NASA put Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin on the moon, the first humans to accomplish this feat.
In America, space travel is a controversial issue that many discuss. Although exciting, some people find it unnecessary and a waste of money. There are also many risks associated with space travel and many issues are more important than space travel that should be focused on. There are ethical, diplomatic, and economic issues that need to be considered before making decisions about space exploration.
Most people think that the costly downside to funding space exploration is a reason to avoid spending money on sciences and instead spend it on problems here on earth, but such funding for space exploration actually promotes economical as well as scientific benefits. Space exploration is an important expenditure for the high cost because of the potential for numerous benefits such as the possibility to find useful resources to cultivate, space exploration and satellites produce many thousands of jobs in our economy, and it creates and discovers newer and better technologies through research and development.
An Astronomy topic that has always been intriguing is space travel. The ability to rocket into space, look down on Earth, and “…explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no man has gone before” (IMDB) is an adventure that people dream of experiencing. On July 20, 1969, an estimated six million people watched Neil Armstrong become the first man to walk on the Moon (Nixon Library). Presently, people are paying Virgin Galactic $250,000 to reserve a seat on a spaceship that is expected to tour suborbital space in the near future (Virgin Galactic). Although space travel continues to be of interest, there is also some controversy. Controversies include: the allocation of government resources for space exploration, government verses commercial spacecrafts, and the need to colonize other planets for the survival of humanity. The intrigue and the controversy of space travel are the reasons for this Astronomy conversation.
Anderson, E., Piven, J. & Tito, D. (2005), The Space Tourist's Handbook: Where to Go, What
Since the discovery of powered flight, man has endeavored to test the limits of traveling higher, faster and longer. With the advent of rocket technology in the early 20th century, “higher” came to mean orbiting the Earth, eventually culminating in NASA’s Apollo 11 mission to the moon. “Faster” meant setting record after record of speeds in excess of the sound barrier, with the very same Apollo missions reaching velocities of almost 25,000 miles per hour. “Longer” can currently be summated by the International Space Station (ISS), which has been continually manned for over 13 years; the longest single period of time in space for an individual in that span is 215 days. In the past few decades, many space programs around the world have experienced dwindling national and international interest, mirroring a decrease in funding. However, one aspect of space travel has recently begun to pique the interests of medical professionals in particular- the effects of long duration space travel on the human body. With recent technological advances, long term voyages through the cosmos have leapt from the pages of science fiction and into reality, with several public and private entities- including NASA- planning manned missions to Mars as soon as the year 2030. While that may seem a long way off from the present, research into the effects of extended cosmic voyages on human beings is still in its infancy, especially with regards to the potential effects such a journey might have on the psychological states of astronauts.