belgareth
10-09-2004, 04:30 AM
Is anybody
here besides me following the developments in private/commercial space travel? Rutan's accomplishments above the
Mojave Desert were nothing short of phenominal and he has been well rewarded but was only tiny a step in the right
direction. He has since signed a deal to develop comercial space travel in partnership with Virgin Airlines of
Britian. Together they hope to make tourist trips into space a reality before the end of this decade. Now, the owner
of Budget Suites is sponsoring another, greater contest with the goal of eventually offering accomadations in orbit.
He is putting up $50 million as a prize for those with the ability and willingness to persue that goal.
IMHO,
it's a wonderful thing to see private development into the exploration and exploitation of space. While government
has done well in proving it can be done, commercial enterprise is much more able to make it viable economically.
Certainly, it will be a for profit venture and appears to be mainly as a tourist attraction now. But how many
scientific projects are on hold today because they don't have a space born facility to work in? How many
manufacturing processes to produce medicines and materials would be better done outside Earth's gravity? What
processes that are terribly dangerous or polluting here on Earth could be moved safely away from this planet? What
new technological marvels can this venture bring to our lives? I think we are on the verge of seeing many wonders
that were only fantasies when I was a child.
here besides me following the developments in private/commercial space travel? Rutan's accomplishments above the
Mojave Desert were nothing short of phenominal and he has been well rewarded but was only tiny a step in the right
direction. He has since signed a deal to develop comercial space travel in partnership with Virgin Airlines of
Britian. Together they hope to make tourist trips into space a reality before the end of this decade. Now, the owner
of Budget Suites is sponsoring another, greater contest with the goal of eventually offering accomadations in orbit.
He is putting up $50 million as a prize for those with the ability and willingness to persue that goal.
IMHO,
it's a wonderful thing to see private development into the exploration and exploitation of space. While government
has done well in proving it can be done, commercial enterprise is much more able to make it viable economically.
Certainly, it will be a for profit venture and appears to be mainly as a tourist attraction now. But how many
scientific projects are on hold today because they don't have a space born facility to work in? How many
manufacturing processes to produce medicines and materials would be better done outside Earth's gravity? What
processes that are terribly dangerous or polluting here on Earth could be moved safely away from this planet? What
new technological marvels can this venture bring to our lives? I think we are on the verge of seeing many wonders
that were only fantasies when I was a child.