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Zero-G, the first and only company approved by the FAA to conduct weightless flights for the general public, has reached an agreement with NASA to use the space shuttle’s runway and landing facility at Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida.

The first flight for the public will launch on June 24, and Zero-G will conduct up to 280 weightless flights per year from KSC.

"We are extremely pleased to have ZERO-G sign on as a regular user of our Shuttle Landing Facility," Jim Kennedy, Director of Kennedy Space Center, said. "This is the ideal place for activities that share the experience of space flight with the general public."

For more information on Zero-G’s weightless experiences, read the April 2006 issue of The Genre Traveler at www.thegenretraveler.com/APR2006/TGTApril2006.htm.

When I read in Popular Science that Eric Anderson, the CEO of Space Adventures, the first “cosmic travel agency,” I was intrigued. So I went over to Amazon.com and did a search.

Would you believe that there are several books on space tourism? And they aren’t fiction! Amazon even sells articles on the topic.

Well, just for a hoot – and so you could see I’m not making this up – I’ve gathered them all on one page for you to peruse. Have fun!

Space Adventures, the “space experiences company” I mentioned in my Oct. 2, 2005, post, announced Thursday that it plans to build a spaceport in the United Arab Emirates. The spaceport will be based in Ras Al-Khaimah near the southern end of the Persian Gulf, less than an hour drive from Dubai. Other potential locations include Asia, specifically Singapore, and North America. The total estimated cost of the global spaceport development project is at least $265 million. Space Adventures said that the UAE government has made an initial investment of $30 million and that His Highness Sheikh Saud Bin Saqr Al Qasimi of Ras Al-Khaimah, along with the UAE Department of Civilian Aviation, have granted clearance to operate suborbital spaceflights in their air space. Various other parties will fund the total project, as well. "As a global leader of tourism, the United Arab Emirates is an ideal location for a spaceport,” said Eric Anderson, President and CEO of Space Adventures. “Suborbital flights will offer millions of people the opportunity to experience the greatest adventure available, space travel. We are honored to partner with His Highness Sheikh Saud." “I am proud to announce Ras Al-Khaimah as the site where suborbital commercial space travel will begin and flourish,” said His Highness Sheikh Saud. “After we initiate operations here, we look forward to expanding operations outside of the United Arab Emirates…. We are most excited about spearheading this multi-billion dollar industry." Now, don’t get this confused with the spaceport that Virgin Galactic is building in New Mexico, which I mentioned in my Jan. 19, 2006, post. That one will only cost $225 million. For more information: Space Adventures Press Release Virgin Galactic Press Release

Back in October, I wrote about space tourism. Recently, two companies have made steps to bring that dream a little closer.

New Mexican Spaceport
At a Sept. 27, 2004, press conference announcing the formation of Virgin Galactic, Sir Richard Branson, the founder of the Virgin suite of companies including Virgin Records and Virgin Atlantic, boldly stated, “We’re going to space.” He announced “plans to build -- and launch -- within three years the first of Virgin’s fleet of Spaceships -- the VSS Enterprise. A spaceship designed to carry fare-paying pioneers on a journey to the stars.”

Last month, Virgin Galactic and the state of New Mexico announced their agreement to build a $225 million spaceport near the White Sands Missile Range. New Mexico Economic Development Secretary Rick Homans said construction could begin as early as 2007, depending on environmental and aviations authorities’ approval.

Located about 25 miles south of Truth or Consequences, N.M., 90 percent of the space port will be constructed underground, with just supporting structures and the runway above ground.

Already, 38,000 people from 126 countries have paid a deposit for their seat on future flights into space. 100 of these form a core group of “founders” who paid the initial $200,000 per seat upfront.

According to Stephen Attenborough, the executive in charge of marketing the Virgin Galactic flights, said these founding members were committed to boarding a flight early in the operations. “Many of the others will need to wait until the price comes down,” he said, “and will want to wait for proven reliability and safety.”

Trevor Beattie, one of the people who have already paid for his ticket, is not so much concerned with safety as with being around when the time comes. “My only concern,” he said, “is that the longer they leave the launch, the more likely we all are to be hit by a bus.”

Commercial Spaceship Builder
Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon.com, has started a small company called Blue Origin, a company that many believe to be the first private rocket ship complex in North America. According to its website, “Blue Origin is developing vehicles and technologies that, over time, will help enable an enduring human presence in space.”

With initial research efforts focused on reusable liquid propulsion systems, low cost operations, life support, abort systems and human factors, Blue Origin is “currently working to develop a crewed, suborbital launch system that emphasizes safety and low cost of operations.”

Based in the Seattle area, Blue Origin’s 243,000-square-foot complex of office and warehouse space is currently being converted into bays, construction facilities and chemical laboratories. Bezos also plans to build a spaceport of his own neat the West Texas town of Van Horn, according to SixNewThings.com, with the hopes that the first test flights will take place before the end of this year.

Would you pay $20 million (USD) to visit space? Gregory Olsen, Ph.D., a U.S. scientist and millionaire reportedly did just that. He, and an American-Russian crew aboard Russia's Expedition 12, set off for the International Space Station yesterday, making Olsen the third non-astronaut to visit the station. They are due to arrive tomorrow (Monday).

Although Olsen would rather be called a "space flight participant" than a "space tourist," in many ways that is actually what he is. Olsen's trip was brokered by Space Adventures Ltd., a "space experiences company" based in Arlington, Va., the same company that organized trips for the first two space tourists: Dennis Tito, a businessman from California, visited the space station in 2001, and Mark Shuttleworth from South Africa, went in 2002.

And these aren't necessarily the interested few. Market research has found that the interest in space tourism is substantial -- but as a genre traveler, you probably already knew that! In 2001, Space Adventures surveyed 2,022 people selected based on income, education level and location (U.S. and Canada). 86% showed an interest in traveling into space for leisure and tourism. Studies have also been conducted in the 1980s and 1990s, all with similar positive results.

Funds for Space

On Friday, Olsen told The Associated Press in a telephone interview that he hoped his flight would help "make space flight more routine." It is certain, however, that his money is helping the under-funded Russian Space Agency, which has turned to space tourism as a way to generate extra funds. According to SpaceFuture.com, space tourism may be the only way to make space activities a profitable, commercial endeavor, as well as take much of the burden of space exploration off the shoulders of taxpayers.

What Is Space Tourism?

Space tourism is defined as "members of the public traveling to and from space by buying tickets like an airline," according to SpaceFuture.com. But, it really isn't that easy. There are physical and medical requirements for anyone traveling into space, primarily due to the g-force the body experiences during lift off.

Still, the dream lives on. According to Eric Anderson, president of Space Adventures, Olsen "has really brought out a lot more people who are very interested in this." As he says, "The third time is the charm."

Space Adventures offers a variety of programs for potential space tourists, such as Zero-Gravity and MiG (micro-gravity) flights, cosmonaut training, spaceflight qualification programs, reservations for future suborbital spacecrafts and DSE-Alpha. The latter is the first in a series of lunar missions to be featured in Space Adventures' Deep Space Expeditions program, expected to begin as early as 2008. (Two commercial seats are available at $100,000,000 (USD) each.)

Space Commercialism

Although Olsen rejects assertions that space tourism is leading to the commercialization of space, commercialism is joining him on his journey. In addition to about 50 scientific experiments to be conducted during Expedition 12, a television commercial for Nissin Food Products' Cup Noodle instant noodles will be shot. A cosmonaut will star in the commercial shot using a high-definition camera sent along by the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency. The commercial is scheduled to air sometime in November.

Space Tourism for Everybody

Right now, the only way for space tourists to get into space is aboard the space shuttle or the Russian Soyuz - both rather inefficient and expensive. But that may not be the case forever. Sir Richard Branson, the founder of the Virgin suite of companies including Virgin Records and Virgin Atlantic, formed Virgin Galactic in 2004, with the goal of becoming the first commercial space tourism operator. This happened on the coattails of SpaceShipOne's successful flight on June 21, 2004.

"We're going to space," Branson promised at a Sept. 27, 2004, press conference. That day, he announced "plans to build - and launch - within three years the first of Virgin's fleet of Spaceships - the VSS Enterprise. A spaceship designed to carry fare-paying pioneers on a journey to the stars."

SOURCES:

----. (2005.) "Millionaire Blasts Off to Space." Oct. 1.

Eckel, Mike. (2005.) "U.S. Space Tourist Ready to Blast-Off." Sep 30, 6:22 AM (ET).

Press Release. (2005.) "Space Adventures Announces Exclusive Marketing Agreement with Travel Agency, JTB Corp." Aug. 18.

WEBSITES:

SpaceFuture.com

SpaceAdventures.com

Science.HowStuffWorks.com/space-tourism.htm

VirginGalactic.com