2021 is the opening year of space tourism. But for whom?

Others also question the purpose of space tourism. “These are technological achievements, there is no doubt about that,” said Kathryn Denning, an anthropologist and space ethics researcher at York University in Toronto. However, she said, “Their most important achievement is to control the airwaves and television reports.”

Tickets so far Getting to the edge of space requires six figures—200,000 dollars or more—and booking an orbital expedition can cost up to eight figures. The price of a short space flight of $200,000 exceeds annual revenue 90% of Americans. It’s hard not to notice this, especially when Climate crisis, Pandemics and growing awareness of inequality.Each seat on a suborbital flight is like rolling out a home when there are more than 500,000 homeless Americans, or rolling out a family’s lifetime medical expenses when tens of millions lack medical care. Or just like in Most Americans Unable to receive higher education.

“Every time someone flies for $250,000, and in the same country, children don’t eat, people line up at the border, honestly, it’s hard for me to understand it,” Denning said.

But if the aviation industry in the 20th century is used as a guide, although these flights will start as luxury goods, with the opening of the market and the improvement of technology and infrastructure, prices will drop, and the opportunity to enter space will expand to among the ultra-rich. outside. “If you go back 100 years, it’s not that your ordinary people have just begun to figure out how to fly around the world using the advantages of airlines. But now, anyone can jump on a plane for a very reasonable amount. And they don’t think twice. It’s very safe. This may be the vision of space,” Bernstein said.

This is not the first time that a few wealthy people have played a huge role in American space activities. “Actually, billionaires like Andrew Carnegie and John D. Rockefeller funded the country’s largest astronomical telescope in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Robert Goddard, America’s first rocket pioneer )’S main source of funding is the Guggenheim family,” said Alex MacDonald, NASA’s chief economist.

On the other hand, MacDonald pointed out that NASA has supported and invested in the emerging private space industry for decades, and signed various equipment and service contracts, including the fledgling SpaceX, which will turn 20 next spring. NASA is currently investing in Blue Origin and two other companies for Commercial Space Station Track the International Space Station.This is an long term plan Support the private sector in low-Earth orbit, while reducing costs and freeing up more institutional budgets for long-distance exploration.

Although the first six years of space flight belonged to well-trained astronauts, now passengers can fly just for spectacular scenery, fun or challenges. Although the cost of air tickets is high, these early private flights did make room for a few people who had never had a chance before. The commander of SpaceX Inspiration4 is Jared Isaacman, the billionaire CEO of payment processing company Shift4Payments, who funded tickets to three other travelers. Artist and scientist Sian Proctor won her prize in a competition, Chris Sembroski got his lottery ticket from a friend who won a lottery-like competition, and Hayley Arceneaux was appointed as the ambassador of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital , The hospital provided support to the organization. The mission raised 200 million US dollars-this charitable purpose may become a model for some other private flights. Virgin Galactic announced On November 24, Antigua’s health and energy coach Keisha Schahaff won two seats in a raffle that raised $1.7 million for Space for Humanity, a Denver-based non-profit organization dedicated to passing Its citizen astronaut plans to expand access to space.