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Space tourism here is here to stay, and will likely remain a permanent fixture of near-Earth activities for the foreseeable future. But is it worth it?\u00a0<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n While for decades private individuals have been able to negotiate with national space agencies to get rides to the International Space Station, it wasn\u2019t until the advent of private aerospace that many more opportunities opened up. With wealthy billionaires like Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, and Richard Branson all creating their own rocket companies, it changed the playing field. Now if you are a private individual wanting to take a hop into space you can shop around with a lot more options.<\/p>\n While Elon Musk\u2019s SpaceX does not have a stated goal of space tourism, if you are willing to front the money you can get a ride on a Crew Dragon capsule, like Jared Isaacman recently did with his Polaris Dawn mission. On the other end of the spectrum, Richard Branson\u2019s Virgin Galactic is explicitly designed around space tourism. They offer short sub-orbital hops for a few hundred thousand dollars each.<\/p>\n Space tourism certainly has several positives. For one there is more interest and activity in space which generally brings positive attention to the industry. Second, by companies chasing after a new market niche, these companies are developing new technologies and approaches which can have further beneficial effects on the larger industry. Lastly, there\u2019s the well-reported \u201coverview effect\u201d where people finally get a view of our fragile home planet and gain a new perspective on what is important in human life.<\/p>\n \n