US millionaire Dennis Tito has made a reality what many thrill-seeking earthlings feared they could never see in their lifetime: space tourism.
Space has long held a lure for an untold number of people bound to the confines of the Earth's surface. Up to now, only some 400 lucky astronauts and cosmonauts have had the privilege of voyaging past our atmosphere into the pitch black of the cosmos.
But when Tito glided out of a Soyuz spacecraft and into the International Space Station (ISS) on Monday, the tourist industry suddenly had a completely new destination to offer.
There is plenty of jockeying among those eager to become the next "space tourist." Several people have already put their names down to visit the ISS, including "Titanic" film director James Cameron, according to the US media.
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is dead set against such flights of fancy, although in 1977, it carried out a survey which found that one third of the US population wanted to visit outer space.
Last year, the marketing firm Yankelovich determined that 55 million people would be willing to go on a two week space cruise aboard a space shuttle. It said it would cost one billion dollars to refurbish the shuttle fleet, but that NASA could make 30 billion a year from space tourism.
Patrick Collins, a researcher for the Japanese space agency, recently said that 70 percent of all Japanese and US citizens under 50 years of age would be interested in taking a trip into space.
At present, very few candidates are able to pay what Tito did -- 20 million dollars, or 1,800 dollars per minute -- to make their dream come true. Nevertheless, several companies have set up business to bring "democracy" to outer space.
Space Adventures already offers for 12,000 dollars an adrenalin-packed flight aboard a Mig-25 fighter jet taking passengers at twice the speed of sound close to the edge of the atmosphere at 24,000 meters (79,00 feet). The company also organizes flights giving the sense of weightlessness for a few seconds.
For 98,000 dollars -- a little over the 70,000-dollar bill for an expedition to Mount Everest -- Space Adventures expects to offer commercial trips into space in three years.
Space Island has more ambitious plans. By 2007 it hopes to build its own space station and a shuttle fleet to serve it.
Robert Bigelow, president of Bigelow Aerospace, is thinking of building a hotel on the Moon for 100 top-paying customers and a staff of 50.
The US Congress recently held a hearing on space tourism attended by, among others, Buzz Aldrin, the second human being to set foot on the Moon, who currently heads the ShareSpace Foundation promoting commercial space flight.
"Privatization will make it possible for your average citizen to travel into space," he told lawmakers. "Space tourism is a big market that, once it takes off, will grow astronomically. And when that happens it will reduce the cost tremendously."
The X Prize Foundation is offering 10 million dollars to the first private team capable of launching three people to an altitude of 100 kilometers (65 miles) twice in a fortnight. Twenty teams have already signed on to the challenge.
For the average earthling, meanwhile, more affordable space travel is at hand, albeit for the last voyage: Celestis Inc. specializes in putting human ashes in orbit. LSD apostle Timothy Leary has already taken this ultimate trip into the void of space -- WASHINGTON (AFP)
© 2001 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
